Aston Villa are reportedly keen on Watford shot stopper Romelu Lukaku.
Watford’s Costel Pantilimon
According to The Sun, Aston Villa will have to fork out £2m if they want to sign Watford goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon this summer.
Villa landed their first signing of the Roberto Di Matteo era earlier this week, as centre back Tommy Elphick joined the club from Premier League side Bournemouth.
Elphick is just the start for Villa though, with a host of new signings needed to help the club push for immediate promotion back to the Premier League.
Last week, The Mirror reported that Villa boss Di Matteo had set his sights on Watford goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon, with improvements certainly needed in that area of the pitch.
Neither Brad Guzan nor Mark Bunn impressed in the Premier League last season, and as he looks to solidify the Villa defence, Di Matteo may want to bring in a new shot-stopper this summer – and it’s believed that Pantilimon is a top target.
However, The Sun now report that Watford have told Villa they must pay £2m to land Pantilimon this summer, having only signed him from Sunderland back in January.
The giant Romanian, 29, made just four appearances for the Hornets following his January arrival, and none of those displays came in the Premier League.
With aspirations of supplanting Ciprian Tatarusanu as Romania’s first-choice goalkeeper, Pantilimon may know what he needs first-team football, and a move to Villa Park could give him every chance of doing just that – but whether Villa are willing to pay £2m to land him remains to be seen.
Would you like to see Villa spend £2m on Pantilimon?
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