A claim has emerged on Aston Villa and their pursuit of a new striker in the summer transfer window...

What's the talk?

Journalist Dean Jones has claimed that Steven Gerrard is looking for a clear improvement on Ollie Watkins at the top end of the pitch.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “In attack, it’s got to be somebody that is an upgrade on Watkins and Ings in terms of what they’re going to bring you in output.

“There are a lot of players of a similar level to Watkins and Ings, but I think the feeling is that if there’s not a guarantee that we’re going to get more goals out of this guy, then we will just wait because somebody else will still become available in this window.”

These comments came after he recently claimed that “they’re just going to wait out on a couple of situations" in regards to their pursuit of a number nine.

Supporters will be excited

Villa supporters will surely be excited by the prospect of the club snapping up an upgrade on Watkins before the end of the window.

In the Premier League last season, the £28m dynamo was their top goalscorer with 11 strikes in 35 matches. Meanwhile, Ings produced seven goals in 30 games - starting 22 in total - as the ex-Brentford man was Gerrard's go-to up front.

Watkins enjoyed an impressive first campaign in the top-flight as he scored 14 goals and provided five assists in 37 outings - averaging a SofaScore rating of 7.05.

One of his weaknesses, however, is his lack of hold-up play. Last season, he lost 59% of his individual battles and only completed 71% of his attempted passes, which shows that he struggled to make himself a focal point for the team.

The 26-year-old has scored on a semi-regular basis since arriving from the Bees and that is why Villa fans will be excited by Gerrard looking to find an upgrade in the market, as it suggests that they want to find a player who can score 15+, or maybe even 20+, in the division.

They feel that a striker with that quality will become available between now and the end of August and this gives the fanbase something to look forward to in terms of transfers over the next six weeks or so.

It is now down to the board and the head coach to find the upgrade on Watkins that they want to fire the team up the table next term.

AND in other news, AVFC reach "agreement" to complete 5th summer signing, supporters will be buzzing...