OPINION
Aston Villa must spring into life and stage a late rescue attempt to sign Burnley forward Matej Vydra as he’d be a very useful addition in the second half of the season.
The 26-year-old attacker joined Burnely in the summer from Derby and despite Sean Dyche’s side struggling in front of goal, he has only managed to feature eight times in the Premier League.
Given that according to BBC Sport Burnley are near to getting rid of Sam Vokes and signing Peter Crouch, then it seems likely that Vydra will still struggle for opportunities in the second half of the season.
Vokes appeared to be already ahead of the 26-year-old in the pecking order and Crouch, who is 38, is likely to get more chances to feature than the striker.
It’s unlikely that Crouch would move to a club that wasn’t going to use him, given the stage of his career that he is in.
This means that Vydra is in need of recusing from Burnley before the transfer window slams shut if he wants regular football and the Villans must be the team to do that.
The forward may not be having a great time in the Premier League as it stands, but Vydra is a proven goalscorer in the championship.
The former Watford attacker has scored 65 goals in 187 Championship appearances in his career and could bolster Dean Smith’s attacking options.
It’s very likely that after signing him in the summer, Burnley could be open to loaning Vydra out to get playing time instead out-right selling him and that falls into Villa’s hands.
The 26-year-old due to his lethal finishing ability, creative vision which he demonstrates with his passing and the fact he is a bit of free-kick specialist, Aston Villa must pounce on him before the window slams shuts.