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Leon Bailey latest forward rumored to Aston Villa

ByAndrew Capitelli|
LEVERKUSEN, GERMANY - APRIL 17: Leon Bailey of Bayer Leverkusen celebrates after scoring their team's third goal during the Bundesliga match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and 1. FC Koeln at BayArena on April 17, 2021 in Leverkusen, Germany. Sporting stadiums around Germany remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Friedemann Vogel - Pool/Getty Images)
LEVERKUSEN, GERMANY - APRIL 17: Leon Bailey of Bayer Leverkusen celebrates after scoring their team's third goal during the Bundesliga match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and 1. FC Koeln at BayArena on April 17, 2021 in Leverkusen, Germany. Sporting stadiums around Germany remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Friedemann Vogel - Pool/Getty Images)

Reporting by TalkSport and the Daily Mail on Wednesday stated Aston Villa are interested in signing Jamaica international Leon Bailey from Bayer Leverkusen of the German Bundesliga.

The 23-year-old winger scored 15 goals and was credited with 11 assists in all competitions for Leverkusen in 2020/21 and could be available for a fee of around £30 million.

BirminhamLive’s Ashley Preece confirmed Villa’s interest in Bailey, stating the club has moved on from Arsenal’s Emile Smith-Rowe–a player the club made at least two bids for over the past month.

Villa’s purported desire to sign Bailey is a strong statement of intent. His menacing speed and eye for goal turned heads last season, capturing the attention of Manchester United, AC Milan, Tottenham, and Arsenal.

Bailey’s profile makes him an ambitious but logical target for Villa as they prepare for a season in which they’ll be without wingers Bertrand Traoré and Trézéguet for considerable stretches. Both will miss the start of the season due to injury and are expected to join their respective nations–Burkina Faso and Egypt–for the Africa Cup of Nations after the New Year.

Primarily a right-winger, Bailey–currently with the Jamaican national team at the CONCACAF Gold Cup–boasted impressive metrics for Leverkusen last season. As per @pgr_analytics on Twitter, Bailey averaged 0.3 assists- and 0.5 goals-per-90 minutes, placing him firmly among the league’s elite.

Should Villa sign Bailey, one of Jack Grealish or Emi Buendia would move into a more central attacking role. Rumors of the club’s interest in Burnley winger Dwight McNeil emerged over the past few days, signaling the club’s willingness to shake up a line-up that presumed to have Grealish on the left and Buendia on the right.

Bailey is the latest in a long line of attackers rumored to be on Aston Villa’s radar, but he’s the most exciting player they’ve been linked with this summer. A front four of Bailey, Grealish, Buendia, and Ollie Watkins would terrorize Premier League back lines and surely place Villa on an immediate pathway to European qualification.

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