Aston Villa plot audacious move for Inter Milan forward to transform attack, but big West Ham threat looms

Lautaro Martinez and Joaquin Correa of Inter Milan

Aston Villa have gone big in their attempts to refresh the attack and have begun targeting an Inter Milan forward, although West Ham are currently in ‘pole position’ for him, according to a report.

Villa’s main striker is Ollie Watkins. The Englishman only managed three goals during his first 18 Premier League matches of the season. But he has turned his fortunes around by going on a brilliant run with six goals in his last eight league appearances.

Manager Unai Emery can utilise Emi Buendia, Philippe Coutinho, Leon Bailey and Jacob Ramsey in the spaces in and around Watkins. But after the January sale of Danny Ings to West Ham, Emery could probably do with having another high-quality striker in his ranks.

Jhon Duran is in the Villa squad, but at 19 years of age he must be given time to adapt to the Premier League and develop his game.

Villa have been linked with Roma star Tammy Abraham and Lyon’s Moussa Dembele. Abraham will be sold by Roma in the summer, while Dembele has decided he will leave Lyon at the end of his contract in June.

But another player Villa are considering signing is Inter’s Joaquin Correa. According to Sport Witness, who cite Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter want to sell Correa later this year as he has failed to impress this term.

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The 28-year-old, who has previously played for the likes of Lazio and Sevilla, has only found the back of the net three times from 26 matches this season.

Inter have decided to replace Correa with Bologna attacker Riccardo Orsolini. But they must sell second striker Correa first to gain the necessary transfer funds to sign Orsolini.

Inter player available for transfer as Villa watch on

Despite Correa’s recent struggles, he still represents a great transfer opportunity. After all, he has experience on the biggest stage, having won the Coppa Italia with both Inter and Lazio and been a part of Argentina’s Copa America winning side in 2020-21.

It is ‘increasingly probable’ the forward will be sold by Inter and this is where Villa come in. They are monitoring Correa’s situation and could soon send an offer to Inter for him.

However, Emery’s side will have one major obstacle to overcome before completing the deal. This is because West Ham are providing stern competition for his signature and are currently in ‘pole position’ in the transfer race, the report claims.

West Ham believe Correa could get the best out of Gianluca Scamacca by forming a deadly striker partnership with the former Sassuolo man. This would leave Ings and Michail Antonio on the bench fighting to get back into the starting eleven.

The report does not reveal how much Correa would cost either English side. His contract at Inter runs until June 2025, which rules out a potential free transfer.

Although, due to his underwhelming season, he could move on the cheap as his transfer value has fallen from £26.4million to £12.3m, according to transfermarkt.

Meanwhile, Man Utd vs Aston Villa could get interesting next season after an Erik ten Hag transfer target revealed how he ‘hates’ one of Emery’s players.