Emerging Bodymoor Heath news opens debate as to who is Dean Smith’s main striker

Aston Villa manager Dean Smith will be buoyed to learn that Brazilian striker Wesley is edging closer to a return to full fitness.

The 23-year-old arrived at Villa Park last summer from Belgian side Club Brugge and he almost instantly made an impact, netting five goals in 21 appearances last term.

However, he suffered a cruciate ligament injury against Burnley on New Year’s Day in a game which also saw Tom Heaton incur a similar blow.

Wesley is now edging close to a return after almost 11 months out injured, with Villa posting a behind-the-scenes snap of the striker during a training session.

Twitter: Step-by-step. https://t.co/LNKmG49ENj https://t.co/9tyJCjRyQQ (@AVFCOfficial)

With Wesley closing in on a return, it will be interesting to see if the Brazilian gets back in Dean Smith’s starting XI, especially with summer signing Ollie Watkins producing superb form.

Looking ahead to Wesley’s return to the fold, we have compared the two strikers and debated who Smith may opt to go with as his main centre-forward in the future, whilst also looking at the potential of either Keinan Davis or Bertrand Traore playing in the number nine role.