If Wesley Moraes doesn’t make swift progress with his return from injury, Aston Villa manager Dean Smith will consider signing a striker when the winter transfer window opens.
Celtic’s Odsonne Edouard and Bournemouth’s Josh King have been linked with Aston Villa in the past and might be targeted in January, but Birmingham Live also claimed that Liverpool’s Divock Origi could be on their radar. Their report stated that the Belgian could be made available by the Merseysiders for sale in January.
The 25-year-old joined the Reds from Lille in 2014 and has gone on to make 146 appearances in all competitions, scoring 35 goals and supplying 13 assists. Origi won the Premier League title and the Champions League at Liverpool, scoring in the final of the latter, so he would bring a lot of pedigree to Villa Park.
The Belgian international has been short of form (two goals since April) and playing time (six appearances from a possible 20) under Jurgen Klopp this season, so he could be moved on by the Premier League champions.
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Origi may want more minutes than he’s getting at Liverpool, while Villa could benefit from signing an experienced Premier League striker with a rich CV, so a move could suit all parties.
Klopp has preferred Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, Takumi Minamino, Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane, so he could offload Origi and Xherdan Shaqiri to trim the squad and generate transfer funds. Whether Villa will return for the Belgian marksman remains to be seen, though.
In other news, Dean Smith says one player is ‘pushing‘ for a first Premier League start this season.
