What to expect from Rory Wilson as Aston Villa set to announce the signing
Aston Villa have finally agreed a deal to complete the signing of Scottish wonderkid Rory Wilson from Rangers.
The two clubs have agreed on a £350,000 fee with add-ons for the 16-year-old striker, paving the way for him to join former Rangers boss Steven Gerrard in Birmingham [The Athletic].
Wilson bagged an incredible 49 goals for club and country last season, leading him to be dubbed as ‘one of the best strikers at his age in Europe’ by Scotland Under-17s manager Brian McLaughlin.
The player confirmed his exit from Rangers with a heartfelt Instagram post on Sunday night, with fellow Scotland and Villa youth star Kerr Smith saying: “See you soon.”
Wilson is the latest in a long line of Villa signing some of the brightest talents in Britain after signing Smith and England stars Louie Barry and Tim Iroegbunam.
For their money, Villa will be getting a striker who looks mature beyond his years and could be set for a dazzling future in professional football.
Looking at some of his recent highlights for Scotland Under-17s show that Wilson already possesses great amounts of pace, strength and a lethal finish.
His brace against the Czech Republic back in March saw him single-handedly drag Scotland back from a two-goal deficit and showed his wide array of talents.
Wilson’s first goal was the better of the two, seeing him latch on to a through ball and round the goalkeeper before firing the ball between two defenders into the net.
He showed the pace to beat defenders and the strength to hold them off as well as the patience needed to avoid snatching at chances and blasting the ball straight at the ‘keeper.
His second was more instinctive, a first-time finish after a ball was laid off to him across the penalty area, but it still showed his clinical finishing.
Wilson bagged again in their next international against Georgia and he displayed the reactions needed from an elite-level striker.
A poor cross was floated in from the left-wing, but the defender slipped when attempting to clear, letting Wilson control it on his chest and convert.
His goal in the Scotland Under-17’s defeat to Denmark was similar, with Wilson pouncing on a poor defensive header and making the ‘keeper panic to get the tap-in.
Wilson’s general play sees him drop deep to receive the ball and aid the midfield as well as him drawing fouls to drive his team forward, similar to Jack Grealish.
He is not the finished article, but Villa were right to move for Wilson before one of Europe’s elite do.
In other Aston Villa news, the Lions receive a response after contact was made with Tammy Abraham’s team for a potential move.