Alan Hutton: Steven Gerrard will be desperate to sign 20+ goal striker for Aston Villa this summer
We’re delighted to welcome former Scotland defender Alan Hutton as our exclusive columnist as each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Aston Villa...
Alan Hutton has insisted that Steven Gerrard will be desperate to sign a striker who can score 20+ goals a season for Aston Villa this summer.
The ex-Scotland defender believes that the current partnership of Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins has not been consistent enough to be backed once again in the 2022-23 season.
Hutton admitted that the likes of Bertrand Traore, Anwar El-Ghazi and Mahmoud Trezeguet could all be moved on to help the potential rebuild in the final third.
“I think it will be a position where Steven Gerrard will look to strengthen,” he exclusively told Villa News.
“I know they’ve got a lot of attacking talent and threat, but he will look to offload the likes of El Ghazi, Trezeguet, Traore – these type of guys to bring someone in.
“We’ve seen all last season, trying to play Ings and Watkins with Coutinho in behind, the different formations, has it worked? Some games, yes, but not as often as he would have liked so if Steven Gerrard can bring in that out and out number nine, someone who can score 20-plus goals a season, he’ll be desperate to get someone like that in.”
Desperate.
Ings and Watkins scored 18 goals between them last season, which at first glance doesn’t appear to be too bad.
Gerrard will know that he needs more goals in his side though, and that could be the difference between finishing in mid-table and breaking into those European spots.
Signing the likes of Diego Carlos and Boubacar Kamara will help firm up the side at the other end of the pitch, hopefully giving more freedom to those in the final third.
A new striker scoring 20 goals on top of the contributions of both Ings and Watkins could make all the difference, and it is time for the Lions to go all out in their pursuit.
In other Aston Villa news, the Villans are in pursuit of Anderlecht defender Sergio Gomez