Aston Villa have made a surprise enquiry for Crystal Palace attacker Jason Puncheon, according to a reliable journalist.
Alan Nixon, the Sun’s transfer expert, made the claim on his personal Twitter page on Friday afternoon.
He added that Championship rivals Middlesbrough were already working on a deal to bring the player to the Riverside and were “optimistic” that they would win the race for his signature.
Good move for Aston Villa?
Puncheon is a good player who could still do a great job in the Championship. He joined Palace four years ago in a £2million deal from Southampton, and has made 162 appearances for the south London club since, scoring 16 goals and registering 22 assists. He’s way down the pecking order now though and the 32-year-old has made just one appearance for Crystal Palace this season, in the league cup. He’ll want to play and he’s not going to get first-team football under Roy Hodgson this season. He’s only got a year left on his contract too, so he’ll be free to leave next summer. It would definitely be a good move if Villa could pull it off.
This is Futbol rating: 7/10
Likely to happen?
It’s a late enquiry and it’s come out of the blue. Middlesbrough are said to be further down the line and they’re said to be confident of sealing a deal. Both teams are attractive prospects, both in the top four of the Championship, and both expecting to be pushing for at least a play-off spot at the end of the season. Would Puncheon find the idea of working under Steve Bruce more attractive than Tony Pulis? Very possibly but it all depends how far down the line the deal is. It seems likely he’ll leave on a loan move today, but less likely that Villa Park will be his destination.
This is Futbol rating: 3/10