One of Aston Villa's long-term transfer targets has revealed that he received offers from Premier League clubs in the summer and has hinted at a possible move to the English top flight next summer.
Lille and Canada forward Jonathan David was of great interest to both Chelsea and Villa. The striker, who scored 19 goals in Ligue 1 last season (second most behind Kylian Mbappe), has been with Lille for four years and it is believed the 24-year-old could soon be ready to leave France and begin a new challenge in England.
Aston Villa completed their business, in terms of new signings, very early during this summer's transfer window. Amadou Onana joined the club for a club-record fee of £50 million whilst the likes of Ian Maatsen, Ross Barkley, and Jaden Philogene also joined the club. Villa also sold Douglas Luiz and Moussa Diaby for a combined fee of approximately £90 million and it is thought Unai Emery was hoping to complete more business towards the end of the window. However, PSR restrictions limited his ability to add further quality to the squad despite a number of players leaving on loan deals.
Speaking with The Athletic, David claimed that offers were made to sign him from the Premier League: "There were a couple of offers and we just didn’t finish the deal, that’s it. I spoke to a couple of teams. I spoke with coaches but ultimately made the decision to stay".
Whilst Jhon Duran's future at the club was very much up in the air throughout the summer, it was well-known that Emery was keen to sign another attacking player. Villa spent a long time pursuing a deal for Joao Felix, who in the end signed for Chelsea, and after missing out on that deal many believed Villa had not replaced the hole left by Moussa Diaby. David may have been a strong target for Villa to replace Diaby but with Duran staying at the club, hopes of a deal for a new player faded away.
Depending on how the season develops with Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran, Villa may find themselves in a better position next summer with regards to signing a player like David.
UTV