Aston Villa have been urged to seal what would be a ‘no-brainer’ deal for a La Liga star who would’ve taken a pay cut to join them last summer.
Aston Villa brace for Chelsea after dip in form
Friday’s trip to Molineux was meant to be straightforward.
Wolves are rock-bottom, doomed to the Championship and running on empty. Instead, Villa were outfought, outworked and sent home with nothing.
Joao Gomes struck just after the hour mark with a thunderous effort that crashed in off the underside of the bar, and when substitute Rodrigo Gomes wrapped things up in the eighth minute of stoppage time, Unai Emery had already seen enough.
The Villa boss stormed down the tunnel before the final whistle had even blown — and who could blame him.
It was that kind of performance. Toothless, flat, and devoid of the spark that lit Villa up during the first half of the season. Ollie Watkins barely got a sniff. Morgan Rogers couldn’t find his best.
Villa had the ball but did absolutely nothing with it, and a team that were competing with Arsenal for the title just two months ago are now anxiously looking over their shoulder at Man United, Chelsea and Liverpool in the race for the top four.
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The Spaniard personally wants him at Villa.
Emery himself admitted as much after the game, conceding that the dream of challenging for the Premier League has gone. Champions League football is now the target, and even that is no longer guaranteed.
Chelsea arrive at Villa Park on Wednesday in a game that has suddenly taken on enormous significance. A win would steady the ship and give Villa a foothold in the top four going into their Europa League last-16 first leg at Lille later in the month.
A defeat, and the pressure will intensify quickly.
It is in this context that former Villa scout Bryan King has waded in with a pointed message for the club — and he’s not holding back.
Aston Villa told to re-sign Marcus Rashford by ex-Villa scout
King was stunned when Villa chose not to sign Marcus Rashford permanently after his loan spell from United last year.
The 28-year-old arrived at Villa Park struggling for form and confidence, but thrived under Emery before eventually moving to Barcelona on loan.
King believes that decision to let him go was a serious mistake — and he thinks Villa now have a chance to put it right.
“I think Aston Villa should have signed him after what he did there,” King told Villa News.
“I think it was a mistake for Villa not to sign him, and I know Barcelona is Barcelona.
“At the end of the day, Villa bailed him out back then because he wasn’t playing at Manchester United. I still say Villa rescued Rashford’s career, and it surprises me that they gave him up.
“If they can get a deal over the line for him in the summer, it’s a no-brainer. They already had a perfect chance to sign him because he would have taken a cut in his wages to join Villa.”
Reports suggest Barcelona are keen to make Rashford’s move permanent for around £26 million.
But if they baulk at the fee, Villa should be ready to pounce. Looking at their attacking struggles right now, King’s logic is hard to argue with.
Elsewhere, Emery is believed to be personally keen on a deal for Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson once he returns from his Bayern Munich loan.
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It would be a blow for Unai Emery.
