Aston Villa are one of three Premier League sides reportedly interested in signing Ben Gibson this summer.
While Aston Villa reportedly face a lot of competition for Burnley defender Ben Gibson this summer, perhaps Chris Wilder’s latest comments on Sheffield United’s transfer capabilities hint that it will be Dean Smith’s men who lead the race for the centre-back’s signature.
TEAMtalk reported at the weekend that Villa want Gibson, but so do the Blades, Norwich City, Sheffield Wednesday and Middlesbrough. The report noted that while the Clarets were happy to let their club-record signing go, Gibson has no plans to drop into the Championship, seemingly ruling the latter two sides out of the running.
And based on Wilder’s latest comments, which were reported by the Yorkshire Post, it would appear that Villa have to be considered the favourites to sign the former Boro man.
Wilder suggested that both his side and the Canaries are shopping in a different market to Villa, which certainly hints that Smith’s side have the ability to put the most appealing offer on the table.
“We cannot compete (with most Premier League rivals) and people will go: ‘oh, he is saying that again’,” he said, as reported by the Yorkshire Post.
“I think it will be us and Norwich in terms of the market we are. (Aston) Villa are in a different market to us and you have to accept that and look at the teams who have established themselves in the Premier League after coming up in recent years.”
While some fans have their concerns about potentially signing Gibson, there is no doubt that the Villans certainly need to bolster their defensive ranks before the new campaign begins.
And with Burnley willing to let Gibson go, perhaps there is an opportunity for Villa to pull off a very good piece of business if they are indeed the team that find themselves in the driving seat for the 26-year-old’s signature.
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