There has been a development in Aston Villa's pursuit of veteran striker, Luis Suarez...

What's the word?

As per journalist Ashley Preece - speaking in a Q and A for Birmingham Mail - the Midlands outfit appear to have ended their interest in the Uruguayan ace, with the 35-year-old seemingly longer on his way to Villa Park.

Asked about any offers for the 132-cap gem, the club insider stated: "Suarez was on the cards but that ship, I'm told, has sailed now".

Previous reports had suggested that the Atletico Madrid man - who is set to be a free agent upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the month - was 'under consideration' by the Premier League side, with Villa boss Steven Gerrard having appeared keen to reunite with his former Liverpool colleague.

Supporters gutted

There would undoubtedly have been sceptics who would have questioned the wisdom of signing an ageing star who is past his peak, yet there will also be sections of support that would have loved to see such a prolific marksman pull on a claret and blue jersey.

As it is, those supporters are set to be disappointed, with Suarez seemingly not set to be another marquee arrival this summer, with the club having already brought in four major additions in the current window.

For all his off-field controversies and his perhaps declining influence, the £7.2m-rated man remains arguably one of the most lethal strikers of his era, having been a consistent goalscoring threat over the last decade or so.

In 697 club games across all competitions in his career thus far, the £263k-per-week machine has scored a staggering 436 goals and provided a further 240 assists, while also plundering a further 68 strikes in 132 games at international level.

Having dazzled during a stunning stint at Anfield - where he scored 82 times and added 46 assists in 133 games after joining from Ajax in 2011 - the one-time Groningen man was arguably at his potent best in Barcelona, winning a plethora of major honours and registering 194 goals and 113 assists in just 281 games across all fronts.

An acrimonious exit from the Nou Camp in 2020 after six years in Catalonia was followed by another impressive spell in Madrid, with the 6 foot hotshot proving a point to his former club by netting 21 goals to help fire Diego Simeone's side to the La Liga title in his debut campaign.

Even in the most recent season, the forward still chipped in with 11 league goals for the Spanish outfit - a tally only matched by Ollie Watkins among the Villa squad.

With doubts over the future of Danny Ings, Gerrard and co could no doubt have benefitted from the addition of a proven goalscorer and penalty-box poacher such as Suarez, even if it may have only been a brief relationship.

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