Aston Villa are in the race to sign midfielder Samuel Bastien from Italian top-flight club Chievo Verona, according to a reliable journalist.
Ed Aarons, deputy news editor at Guardian sport, has claimed on his personal Twitter account that the Championship are keen on the 21-year-old alongside Premier League duo Huddersfield and Bournemouth.
The Belgian playmaker is usually deployed as a central midfielder, but has played in a more advanced role earlier on in his development.
Huddersfield, Bournemouth and Villa all interested in Chievo midfielder Samuel Bastien
— Ed Aarons (@ed_aarons) January 16, 2018
Good move for Villa?
Villa already have several central midfield options in their squad and in truth it’s unlikely Bastien could make a breakthrough if he joined for the second half of the season.
The youngster is a developing talent that has represented Belgium at Under-21 level and is plying his trade in the Italian leagues.
He has managed to feature more regard in the past couple of months for Chievo, who are a mid-table Serie A team.
However, it would be a gamble to bring him to the Midlands club mid-way through the season given his lack of experience.
This Is Futbol rating: 5/10
Likely to happen?
Villa seem unlikely to sign Bastien in the near future as they are yet to make an approach for the highly-rated youngster.
There have been countless cases of Belgian stars making a name for themselves in England and the Premier League duo of Huddersfield and Bournemouth would surely be in the running if the midfielder became available.
This Is Futbol rating: 3/10