Aston Villa striker Wesley Moraes shares similarities with Erling Haaland and Olivier Giroud, former Club Brugge teammate Emmanuel Dennis has told Het Nieuwsblad.
Villa’s £22 million front man might not be able to hold a candle to Borussia Dortmund’s blond bomber when it comes to putting the ball in the back of the net.
But, standing at 6ft 3in and blessed with a deceptive turn of pace, Wesley and Haaland certainly have a few things in common.
A better comparison, however, may be to Chelsea’s evergreen targetman Giroud – the kind of unselfish number nine who thrives with his back to goal and loves nothing more than opening up spaces for more technically gifted teammates.
Wesley scored 17 goals in his final campaign at Brugge in 2018/19 but his tally of ten assists proved there’s more to his game than just putting the ball in the back of the net.
“Wesley is like Giroud or Haaland – pure finisher types,” says Dennis, the Nigeria international who finished runner-up in the Jupiler League alongside Villa’s number nine.
“(Luis) Suarez, (Robert) Lewandowski, (Sergio) Aguero, (Pierre-Emerick) Aubameyang and (Karim) Benzema are strikers who dribble. They can create and score opportunities for themselves.
“Giroud, Haaland and Icardi are more machines in the box. Wesley is also such a type.”
Wesley struggled to live up to his lofty price tag at Villa last term, scoring five times in 21 Premier League matches before suffering a season-ending injury in January – one from which he has yet to return.
And with Ollie Watkins thriving in his absence, offering sheer pace and the ability to stretch defences on the counter, the Brazilian looks set to be consigned to the role of £22 million benchwarmer when he returns to full fitness.
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