Aston Villa opinion: Should the Villans sign Jay Rodriguez?

According to a report from Birmingham Live, Aston Villa are set to battle a ton of other Premier League clubs for the signing of West Brom’s Jay Rodriguez in the summer.

The report says that Norwich City, Sheffield United, Leicester City, Burnley and Bournemouth are all keen on the forward who was a star for the Baggies last season.

Rodriguez formed a phenomenal strike partnership with Dwight Gayle and the duo carried the side to the playoffs. The Baggies succumbed to eventual winners Aston Villa on penalties and they now face another long Championship season.

West Brom have already confirmed that they will not sign Dwight Gayle which makes keeping hold of Rodriguez a lot more important.

However, the report reveals that the former England forward will be available for a lot lesser than the £12million that the Baggies paid Southampton for him last summer.

Rodriguez is a proven striker in the Premier League, who is well adjusted to both the technical and the physical side of the English game. A player of his quality for a cut-price fee is sure to bring in a ton of suitors but Villa should make it a point to beat their competition for him this summer.

Villa have finally made it back to the top-flight but the real challenge starts now. Dean Smith’s side are set to lose their star striker Tammy Abraham on completion of his loan deal, which costs them a lot of goals next season.

Abraham scored 25 goals in 37 Championship games this season, which proved to be one of the biggest reasons why Villa made it back to the Premier League.

Replacing a striker of his productivity will be incredibly difficult but signing Rodriguez will ease a bit of pressure on Smith and his board.

Rodriguez scored 22 goals in the Championship this season and he along with Gayle formed what was arguably the best strike partnership in the division.

The former Southampton man has been immensely clinical in front of goal and his movement has caused a ton of problems to the opposition.

The 29-year-old scored both home and away against the Villans last season including the controversial ‘Hand of God’ goal at the Hawthorns. Villa would be happy to see the back of him and the best way to do that is by signing him this summer.

Read more Aston Villa news, click here: Aston Villa latest news

Conclusion

Jay Rodriguez would be a very smart signing for Aston Villa in the summer. The 29-year-old has enough quality and experience in the Premier League to help Dean Smith’s side adjust to the league and his presence will certainly give them a big boost to stay up at the end of the campaign.