According to a report from the Northern Echo, newly-promoted Aston Villa are interested in signing Middlesbrough starlet Marcus Tavernier, who has also attracted interest Watford and Bayer Leverkusen.
The 20-year-old made 20 appearances for Middlesbrough in the Championship this past season. He scored three goals and supplied an assist but couldn’t help Boro secure a place in the play-offs.
Marcus Tavernier’s exploits, nevertheless, haven’t gone unnoticed and whoever becomes Middlesbrough’s new manager will have a tough task of keeping hold of the youngster.
Watford are looking to bolster their attacking options, with Gerard Deulofeu and Roberto Pereyra having attracted interest from AC Milan and Torino respectively. But Dean Smith’s Aston Villa must attempt to beat Watford to land Marcus Tavernier ahead of the new season.
The Villans will play in the Premier League next season after clinching promotion from the Championship via the playoffs. Dean Smith has a good squad, but as many as eight players have already been released, including Mile Jedinak, Alan Hutton, Glenn Whelan and Albert Adomah.
The likes of Tyrone Mings, Anwar El Ghazi, Tammy Abraham, Kortney Hause and Axel Tuanzebe were on loan at Villa and will head back to their parent clubs this month.
The Sun claim the Midlands club are in for a busy summer transfer window following promotion and want to bring in as many as 10 new players, as new club owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens are planning to strengthen the squad to compete in the Premier League.
With Adomah released and the likes of Abraham and El Ghazi set to return to Chelsea and Lille respectively this month, Smith needs to strengthen his attacking options over the summer. Thus, a move for Tavernier would make sense.
Tavernier is one of Championship football’s exciting young talents, who couldn’t muster much game time under Tony Pulis at Middlesbrough in the 2018/19 campaign.
The 20-year-old can play in different attacking positions and also be deployed as a left-back when required. He’ll give a lot of options to Dean Smith, who is a tactically astute manager and knows how to use his resources to the best effect.
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The left-footed starlet can create something out of nothing and he knows how to deliver a decisive pass inside the opposition penalty area.
Furthermore, Tavernier would ease the burden off Jack Grealish’s shoulders and help Aston Villa play a more fluid and dynamic brand of football under Smith.
It’ll cost a considerable amount to sign Tavernier from Middlesbrough, but it would certainly be worth it for Villa if they can pull it off.