Aston Villa have diverted their transfer attentions to a Chelsea forward after Saturday’s loss against Brentford and it’s not the much-touted approach for Nicolas Jackson.
Villa have been disappointing in their first two Premier League matches of the season and the need for reinforcements is clearer than ever. The attacking area is one key focus and Jackson could be difficult to secure given Chelsea’s valuation.
Instead, Villa are reportedly making their move for his estranged teammate Christopher Nkunku. The French striker has failed to thrive since arriving at Stamford Bridge and is not in Enzo Maresca’s future plans.
That doesn’t necessarily make him an easy buy for Monchi and Villa. They could face significant competition from both Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig, Nkunku’s former club.
Chelsea’s valuation of the 27-year-old could also be an issue but we have to assume at this stage that any big signings in the works for Villa will initially be loans with options or obligations to buy.
Villa will be looking closely at Nkunku’s injury record since signing for Chelsea too. He has missed a number of Blues games due to injuries to his hamstring, knee and hip, and Villa must weigh up the risk carefully if they are indeed interested in a move.
The former Paris Saint-Germain youngster was signed and welcomed with excitement when he arrived in London in the summer of 2023. He was a crucial player for Leipzig and was the Bundesliga’s joint-top goalscorer in the 2022/23 season. A knee injury soon put an end to the supporters’ enthusiasm and he was sidelined for four months.
Nkunku scored on his debut but his injury issues continued. He scored again on his return but a lack of rhythm and consistency has been the result of his struggles.
He offered a glimmer of hope when he scored five goals and assisted another three in his five league phase matches in last season’s Conference League, a competition Chelsea went on to win, but his impact in the Premier League has been non-existent.
Nkunku’s time at Chelsea has been a real contrast to his spell at Leipzig. Nkunku rose to prominence between 2019 and 2023, scoring 70 goals and providing 56 assists in 172 appearances in all competitions.
He was part of a Leipzig team that made history, winning the DFB-Pokal back-to-back in 2022 and 2023 and finishing second in the Bundesliga in 2021. Under Julian Nagelsmann, Leipzig and Nkunku reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2019/20.
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