Aston Villa must seal a summer swoop for £9m-rated Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah, and he would make a great partner for Ollie Watkins.

Villa were interested in bringing Nketiah to the club ahead of January but a move never materialised, but they can't make the same mistake this summer and must secure his signature before another club do.

According to Birmingham Live, Villa are still interested in the 22-year old who has made 87 appearances for Arsenal and been directly involved in 22 goals. To have played that amount of games at such a young age is impressive, he has a long career ahead of him and we think he would make a worthy investment.

The Englishman has impressed when called upon by Mikel Arteta this season, particularly in their recent derby victory over Chelsea where he scored a brace.

Following this display his boss Mikel Arteta said he has been "unfair" on him, eluding to the lack of game time he's given to the youngster. It's that lack of game time that could see him leave the club in search for more regular minutes, with Crystal Palace also showing an interest.

His contract expires in June and there is another offer on the table but he looks set to leave for free. Not paying a transfer fee makes signing him even more attractive and a lot less risky, so much so that it's a surprise other clubs aren't in for him.

Former England star Michael Owen has heaped praise on Nketiah calling him a "goal-machine" who has a "hunger to score".

If he made the move to Villa Park then he would be lining up alongside Ollie Watkins. He's been a menace since he arrived from Brentford for £30.6m in 2020 and is the top scorer for the West Midlands side this season.

They could form a formidable partnership that would give the Villans the best chance at achieving Steven Gerrard's aim of 'bringing European football back' to the club.

When you compare the two players they both excel in different areas meaning that they could each contribute to the team in unique ways.

Watkins is better when it comes to shots on target per 90 minutes with 0.92 compared to 0.84, whereas Nketiah beats him when it comes to goal creating actions per 90 with 0.42 compared to 0.22.

Ultimately not much can go wrong and if Villa want to improve their forward line in the summer then he is the best option for them.

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