Aston Villa ‘Prepared To Outbid’ Rivals In Push For Attacker | OneFootball

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Aston Villa have now entered the race for Nice’s in-demand attacker Evan Guessand and the Villans are ‘prepared to outbid’ Crystal Palace, according to journalist Alan Nixon.

The Birmingham-based club have been dealing with issues relating to staying on the right side of financial rules this summer and that has kept them quiet for most of the window so far, a situation which is expected to soon change.

Marco Bizot and Yasin Ozcan have been brought in to increase the squad depth, but no significant faces have come in and Ozcan has now been loaned out to Anderlecht.

However, now they are looking to add one attacker to their ranks after impactful loanees in the shape of Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio departed Villa Park.

Their star striker, Ollie Watkins, also has genuine interest from Premier League clubs this summer and could end up leaving at some point in the window.

And that has led them to go for France-born Nice hitman Guessand, who is also being courted by Crystal Palace.

Unai Emery’s side are serious in the chase for the 24-year-old, as they are prepared to outbid the Eagles for the Ivorian.

He can play almost anywhere across the frontline, but he mostly featured on the right wing and up front as the number 9.

Guessand featured 42 times for the Ligue 1 club last season, scoring 13 goals and providing ten assists in all competitions.

Turkish giants Fenerbahce have also been keen on him this summer and Jose Mourinho even spoke to him via zoom.

Nice coach Franck Haise has made it clear that he does not want to let go of the 24-year-old, as he ‘likes him a lot’.

Haise’s chances of keeping hold of Guessand look slim though and those chances have taken a further blow with Aston Villa’s forceful entry into the race.

Guessand’s suitors though will have to be prepared to be without him for a portion of the season as the Africa Cup of Nations is scheduled to be held in Morocco at the end of the year.

The attacker’s Ivory Coast have been placed in Group F in the tournament, alongside Cameroon, Gabon and Mozambique.