Manchester United are reportedly in contact to sign Aston Villa ace Ollie Watkins, as per The Athletic.
After enduring a dire campaign last term, Ruben Amorim has prioritised revamping the attacking department and is keen on purchasing Premier League-proven players.
The Red Devils have already purchased Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo from Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brentford, respectively. Now, they are planning to focus on the striker department.
Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee are the two main centre-forward options United currently have. Chido Obi is also at the club, but is very young and isn’t ready to play Premier League football yet.
Hojlund displayed disappointing performances last term, and Zirkzee was no better, scoring only seven goals combined in the Premier League.
Now, The Athletic report that Man Utd had several options on their radar to bolster the frontline, but have narrowed down to just two names, with Watkins and Benjamin Sesko being among them. Nicolas Jackson’s name was also floated around, but they aren’t planning to go for him.
Watkins to Man Utd
Man Utd are in contact with Sesko and Watkins to understand the potential cost to finalise either deal. Although it has been suggested that Aston Villa want around £60m for the Englishman, the Red Devils believe they can secure Watkins’s service for a fee of at least £40m, while they have to spend around £69m-£78m to buy Sesko.
Considering Amorim wants a Premier League-proven striker, Watkins would be the right option. A front three of Cunha, Watkins, and Mbeumo would be a mouth-watering prospect for the United fan.
However, the downside of buying Watkins would be that he is set to turn 30 this year. Nevertheless, it is always necessary to have experienced strikers, and they generally peak at this stage of their career.
Watkins has scored 15 or more goals in the last three Premier League campaigns. He propelled Aston Villa to qualify for the Champions League by finishing in the top four in the 2023/24 season and guided them to secure Europa League football last term.
It is going to be interesting to see who the Old Trafford club eventually opt to buy before the end of this transfer window to strengthen the centre-forward position.
