Aston Villa already have one of the best striker pairings in European football, as Jhon Duran has broken out to become quite the goal-scorer as an option off the bench for Ollie Watkins.
Last season, Watkins already had a breakout of his own, establishing himself as one of the best strikers in Europe and one of the best players in the Premier League at any position with 19 goals and 13 assists.
Despite already having two phenomenal strikers, it appears Aston Villa may not be done with assessing the market for opportunities at the position, which is actually a wise policy; nothing is for certain in the long term in football.
Per a report from Caught Offside, Aston Villa are interested in 20-year-old Bologna striker Santiago Castro, who has stepped in as the main man in the 9 spot after Joshua Zirkzee’s big transfer to Manchester United this past summer.
Aston Villa will get a chance to watch Castro up and personal soon, because the Lions will face the Rossoblu in the Champions League on Oct. 22. Bologna’s fairytale run to the UCL last season was even more unlikely than Villa’s, and they remain dangerous in 2024/25, partially thanks to Castro.
The Argentinian international has scored three goals with one assist already in the current Serie A campaign, averaging 2.3 combined fouls drawn and dribbles completed for Bologna.
So Castro looks like a quality goal-scorer and an all-around forward who can create chances for himself, and that’s exactly the kind of player Aston Villa should be looking at.
It’s highly unlikely Villa will sign a striker this coming summer, because Watkins is in his prime and Duran would, if necessary, be the one to take over from him, But in some hypothetical universe where Duran wants out to start every game, Aston Villa could look to Castro as his replacement, if necessary.
Castro’s numbers aren’t as prolific as Duran’s, and nobody should argue that he’s as good. However, he’s talented in his own right and may have just a little more all-around ability as a dribbler.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.