Aston Villa are still looking to fill the void left by Jhon Duran as the summer transfer window enters its embryonic stage.
The Colombian was sold for £71m in January after scoring 12 goals for the club during the first half of the season.
While Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford contributed well between January and May, scoring 12 goals between them, both have since returned to their parent clubs.
This means Unai Emery enters the market looking for a forward who can make a difference. Might he turn to Ligue 1 again?
Aston Villa lead the race for Belgian sensation
It appears as though Rashford won't return to Villa next season. The club have shown interest in Tyler Dibling and Jadon Sancho in a bid to improve their wide options next season.
Rather than focus on Premier League talent, the manager also has eyes on the continent. According to TEAMtalk, Villa are among the clubs leading the race for talented Lyon winger Malick Fofana.
Liverpool and Arsenal are also in contention for the player and the report states that Lyon’s financial troubles could see Fofana available for just £40m this summer.
Lyon's Malick Fofana
A young, left-footed talent ready to make his mark in the Premier League. Can Emery sign his new Duran in a move for Fofana?
Why Villa must sign Malick Fofana
Duran certainly had the potential to become Emery’s main attacking option, but the offer from the Middle East was too good to turn down.
The youngster dazzled with his displays off the bench for the Midlands side, eventually scoring 20 goals in 78 appearances, yet only 17 of those were starts.
Malick Fofana's stats for Lyon (2024/25)
Metric
Goals
Assists
Big chances created
Key passes per game
Successful dribbles per game
Via Sofascore
Emery has been craving a talent like Duran ever since he departed, and in Fofana, the Belgian starlet could become his next exciting young forward. Indeed, journalist Antonio Mango has lauded him for his "frightening speed" and "game-changing potential" - remind you of anyone?
The 20-year-old made his debut for Gent during the 2022/23 campaign, impressing sufficiently to secure a move to Lyon in January 2024.
Jhon-Duran-Aston-Villa
His spell with the French giants has been a major success. Across 62 games, the youngster has registered 22 goal contributions – 15 goals and seven assists – particularly impressing last term.
Indeed, in April, talent scout Jacek Kulig hailed the winger for “showing flashes of his enormous potential” and he was especially dangerous in the Europa League.
When compared to his positional peers in the competition, Fofana ranked in the top 1% for non-penalty goals (1.05), progressive carries (7.88) and touches in the attacking penalty area (8.23) per 90 in the Europa League.
His explosiveness and desire to make things happen in the final third make him an excellent prospect, and he could continue his development under Emery at Villa.
malick-fofana-lyon
Like his fellow left-footer, Duran, he would be an exciting young signing with potential, and there is no doubt Fofana could have a similar sort of impact as the Colombian forward.
With Villa playing in the Europa League – a competition Fofana excelled in – then bringing the Belgian sensation to the Midlands this summer could turn out to be one shrewd move by the manager.
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