Former Bayern Munich and Juventus forward Mario Mandzukic turned down the chance to join Aston Villa because he is prioritising an ‘important project’ elsewhere, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano explained on his Here We Go podcast.
With all due respect to a Villa side who begun the Premier League in impressive fashion, putting ten goals past Arsenal and Liverpool to suggest that a European challenge might be more likely than a relegation battle, a move to the Midlands was never likely to appeal to Mandzukic.
The 89-capped Croatia legend is a man who has grown accustomed to challenging for silverware on the biggest of stages after all.
He won two Bundesliga titles and the Champions League with Bayern Munich, accumulated a grand total of eight winner’s medals at Juventus and, even during a brief stay with Atletico Madrid, found the net 20 times under Diego Simeone at a bona fide Spanish giant.
Even at the age of 34, a striker with such an insatiable appetite for success feels out of reach for a club of Aston Villa’s size and stature.
Romano claims that Mandzukic, who is a free agent after an ill-fated stay with Al-Duhail in the Middle East, also turned his nose up when Bologna came calling.
“He had a bid from (the) Premier League,” Romano, the don of Twitter transfer rumours, explained.
“It was three or four weeks ago, from Aston Villa. They were trying to sign him as a free agent and Mario Mandzukic said ‘no’.
“He wants an important project. He will have a lot of offers but, with Aston Villa, he said ‘no’.”
Aston Villa’s interest certainly raises a few questions, given that they spent £28 million on acquiring Ollie Watkins from Brentford.
Does Dean Smith feel the need fo a genuine ‘Plan B’; an old-school, battering ram of a number nine to shake things up if Villa are struggling to break down a deep-lying defence?
And what does that mean for the future of Wesley Moraes, the injury-hit Brazilian who hasn’t been seen since January?
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