Aston Villa batting Euro giant for World Cup stand-out on Man Utd radar, as talk Emery could replace major name swells

Sevilla have reportedly quoted Aston Villa and a European heavyweight a £26m price tag for a World Cup stand-out who helped Morocco make history by reaching the semi-finals in Qatar.

Bounou has saved three penalties and kept three clean sheets so far in Qatar, putting him in a close second place to Jordan Pickford for the golden glove award. With the third-place play-off still to come, the Moroccan may yet scoop the prize.

Aston Villa and Bayern Munich are the two clubs leading the race to sign Bounou, and both are in need of goalkeeping reinforcements.

Last summer, Sevilla tied Bounou down to a new long-term deal until 2025 to stave off interest from Manchester United, which has since resurfaced, but they remain behind Villa and Bayern in the race.

Following the World Cup, the Spanish club have placed a £26m price tag on the 31-year-old as they potentially look to cash in while his price is at a premium.

Bounou’s heroics in Qatar were simply marvellous to watch.

The shot-stopper kept three clean sheets in his five World Cup games, something made even more impressive when considering he faced Croatia, Spain and Portugal.

He started all but one of Morocco’s matches, missing the clash against Belgium due to illness.

The African nation conceded just one goal in their incredible run to the semi-final, with that one being a freak own goal against Canada.

Bounou move makes sense for both Bayern and Villa

Bayern Munich are desperate for a new goalkeeper after Manuel Neuer broke his leg following a skiing accident after Germany’s early exit.

Neuer had successful surgery last week, but is still expected to be out for the rest of the season, hence the need for reinforcements.

However, £26m is a lot of money for Bayern to pay for Bounou, considering the Moroccan would probably be second-choice to Neuer once their number one returns to action.

But, as they look for their 11th consecutive Bundesliga title, they may decide that having a quality keeper is more important than paying a hefty fee.

As for Aston Villa, while they already have a superb goalkeeper in Emiliano Martinez, new manager Unai Emery is reportedly not on good terms with the Argentine following their spell at Arsenal together, according to the Daily Mail. 

Last month, TEAMtalk reported that Martinez could be on the way to Spurs in January, but whether such a move takes place is yet to be seen.

Sevilla already have a good backup keeper option in Marko Dmitrovic, so you can see the logic behind them listening to offers for Bounou.

Dmitrovic was previously one of the best shot-stoppers in La Liga after shining at Eibar before moving to Sevilla, so they may opt to take the money for the Moroccan while they can.

One thing is for sure though, whoever does sign Bounou in January, if anyone, will have a top quality keeper at their disposal.

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