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Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic is eyeing a stunning Premier League transfer.
Aston Villa are expected to enjoy a busy summer transfer window if they secure European football for another season.
Whether it be the Champions League again or the Europa League or the Europa Conference League, Villa will maintain their allure for some of the continent’s biggest stars.
Unai Emery has helped raise the reputation and expectations of the football club a tremendous amount since his arrival, and that only looks set to continue with Villa in the Champions League quarter-final and FA Cup semi-final.
The winter’s transfer business was astounding as Villa secured the services of attacking trio Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Donyell Malen, while the arrivals of Axel Disasi and Andres Garcia reinforced the defence. More is yet to come, though, with Emery eager to remain competitive for many seasons to come.
One name linked with a potential transfer to Villa Park this summer is Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic. The 25-year-old has scored nine goals in 23 Serie A appearances this season and would be available to sign for £37 million, as per Gazzetta dello Sport.
Will Vlahovic leave Juventus?
Vlahovic has been guarded on his future of late, and last commented on his long-term plans back in 2023, when he said: “I still have two and a half years left on my contract, we’re in no rush but Giuntoli (Juve director) and my agent are already talking.”
Now with just over a year left on that deal, Vlahovic will be considering his options. It appears the Serbian is against staying at Juventus based on the current terms being offered and would be open to a transfer away.
It was recently reported, via The AJC, that “Vlahovic is far from renewing with Juventus and doesn’t want to spread out his salary. Therefore, Juve will try to sell him to the highest bidder”.
La Gazzetta dello Sport claimed, meanwhile, that “Vlahovic’s entourage and Juventus have now understood that it is best to part ways amicably in the summer”.
The same report goes on to say: “Juve believe the terms of a new deal are not sustainable for them financially” and “there is now a possibility of a move to England.”
Snubbing Arsenal and Spurs was ‘easy’
Before making the move to Turin, Vlahovic previously snubbed both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. It was reported widely that the Gunners had failed in their approach as Vlahovic preferred a move to Juve. Meanwhile, a report from CBS Sports in January 2022 suggested the striker didn’t want to play understudy to Harry Kane at Spurs.
Upon signing for Juve instead of Arsenal or Spurs, Vlahovic said: “I am ready to give my all for this glorious club to reach its objectives. There were many rumours about foreign clubs, but the choice was easy because the club and I have a similar DNA.”
Aston Villa now showing interest
Although Vlahovic was absolutely thrilled to join Juve, the move has not quite worked out as he would have hoped as the Old Lady have failed to win any Serie A title in his time at the club. One Coppa Italia crown is the sole silverware achieved in the past three years.
As Vlahovic is yet to be convinced to stay beyond his current contract, Premier League teams - including Villa - have reared their heads. TEAMtalk reports Emery is seriously considering making a move for the striker and Villa are said to be the English club likeliest to sign him.
Although Vlahovic hasn’t spoken about the Premier League directly, he’s hinted that his attributes would align with what the English top tier demands. His comments don’t necessarily align with Emery’s wants, however.
“I like to play with another striker on the side. I get on well but it also depends on the coach,” Vlahovic admitted.
“I can exploit my qualities when they do not force me to do so many defensive tasks. And for a player like me, from my structure, honestly I can't run that much. Because then that way I'm not fresh in the final third.”
How would Vlahovic fit in at Aston Villa?
Although Vlahovic appears to prefer playing as a second striker, he probably wouldn’t be used in that position at Villa Park. Emery experimented with a two-up-top system with Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran but it simply didn’t work, as shown during the regretful 1-0 defeat at AS Monaco.
Upon realising it was too tricky to manage two elite strikers of a similar mould at once, Emery sanctioned Duran’s £67 million transfer to Al-Nassr. You may be thinking, surely he wouldn’t sign Vlahovic, then? Well, that’s a fair point, but Vlahovic is a different profile of striker to Watkins or Duran as he can occupy more of a target man role.
Watkins and Vlahovic would likely have to share game time but that wouldn’t necessarily be an issue as they would offer Villa slightly different routes to goal. Considering how often Emery’s men have been coming up against low blocks this season, adding a new dimension would be a real boost, not a hindrance.
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