View: Aston Villa have badly mishandled Keinan Davis situation
Aston Villa striker Keinan Davis could be denied his permanent move to Nottingham Forest, according to the Birmingham Mail.
With The Reds in talks to sign Union Berlin forward Taiwo Awoniyi, they may decide they have no need to sign Davis.
The decision stems from Villa’s decision to slap a £15million price tag on Davis, despite him not even being worth close to that.
Awoniyi hit 14 goals in 31 Bundesliga matches last season, while Davis has just one goal in 34 Premier League outings.
Despite the gulf in top-flight experience and goals, Awoniyi will cost Forest just £2.5million more than Villa’s valuation of Davis.
While transfer fees are inflated in the Premier League, especially for English players, Villa’s demands have priced the young striker out of the move he needs.
The club were seemingly hopeful of repeating the trick Bournemouth played on them when they signed Tyrone Mings in 2019 by demanding an inflated fee after the buying club were promoted.
However, Forest sourced a better alternative and it has left Davis in the lurch.
So, what now?
It is clear that Davis’ future lies away from Villa Park after he made just one appearance for the club last season.
Forest presented an opportunity for Davis to finally get regular Premier League football after starting just five matches for Villa.
Last season saw him finally find fitness and a scoring touch which should help him find an alternative this summer.
The main stumbling block aside from the fee could be the presence of Cameron Archer.
The Athletic reported on 14 June that Watford held an interest in Davis, but their primary target at striker was Archer.
That seems to be a common theme with Championship clubs, if they want a Villa striker on loan it is invariably the former Preston loanee.
Villa can remove this by keeping Archer, who will be given a chance in preseason according to The Athletic and offering clubs Davis as an alternative.
The powerful striker has two years remaining on his contract so another loan might be his best option if Villa don’t compromise over their valuation.
In other Aston Villa news, reports indicate that the club will not make a move for Liverpool’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.