Gerrard ready to bring bargain striker to Aston Villa as Celtic clause looks worthless

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Aston Villa want Moussa Dembele with Steven Gerrard eyeing a raid that Celtic will be keeping very close tabs on.

This has not been the start to the season Gerrard was seeking at Villa.

Villa have claimed just two wins from their eight Premier League games so far this season, losing four times in that run.

Gerrard finds himself under major pressure and really needs a win against Nottingham Forest tonight, especially after last week’s disappointing 0-0 draw against 10-man Leeds United.

Aston Villa want Moussa Dembele

Gerrard may look for more January signings to turn things around at Villa Park and a new name is being linked with the move to Birmingham.

Jeunes Footeux in France report that Aston Villa are ready to make an offer for Lyon striker Moussa Dembele in January.

It’s stated that Villa like Dembele because he has already experienced British football with Fulham and Celtic and he would be financially attainable.

Dembele is out of contract at the end of the season, meaning Villa could look to secure a bargain deal.

Villa would even be able to offer Dembele a pre-contract agreement to join for free next summer, allowing some leverage for a cut-price January move.

Dembele, 26, has only played 286 minutes of action this season but has scored twice for Lyon.

The Frenchman was superb last season though, racking up 22 goals and five assists in 36 outings for the Ligue 1 side.

Villa do already have Danny Ings, Ollie Watkins and exciting youngster Cameron Archer but maybe Gerrard believes Dembele is the man to get Villa’s attack ticking.

Dembele is bound to appeal to many Premier League clubs, especially due to that contract situation.

Celtic will be watching developments as they have as sell-on clause into the deal that took Dembele to Lyon for just shy of £20million in 2018.

The problem is that Celtic’s sell-on clause is only based on profit Lyon make, and it’s highly unlikely that Villa will be paying more than £20million for a player who only has a few months left on his deal.

It looks increasingly likely that the sell-on clause that once looked so lucrative for Celtic will end up bringing in nothing, with former Rangers boss Gerrard potentially ready to swoop for Dembele.