Deal close: Major development in Aston Villa striker pursuit – Sky journalist
By Harry Sykes
Aston Villa are closing in on the signing of Brentford striker Scott Hogan after making a bid, according to a reliable journalist.
Sky Sports News correspondent Kaveh Solkehol took his Twitter on deadline day to reveal that the Midlands giants are on the verge of securing a deal for the 24-year-old.
Solkehol claimed on his personal Twitter account that the striker is “moving closer” to a move to Villa Park after their “first bid matched what Brentford were looking for”.
It has been widely reported this month that the London side are holding out for £15million for the striker, who has scored 14 goals in 25 league matches this season.
Intriguingly, Solkehol reported that Villa are offering a lucrative package to secure Hogan’s signature ahead of his other suitors with “Premier League wages” said to be on offer.
The Championship club have moved into pole position to land Hogan after Sky Sports reported on their website late on Monday night that Slaven Bilic has decided to end West Ham’s pursuit of Hogan as “he does not need” the Brentford forward.
This has given Villa the opportunity to push hard for the striker that Steve Bruce has claimed he wants for the second half of the campaign.
With Villa refusing to bow to Middlesbrough’s demands for Jordan Rhodes and Arsenal’s Chuba Akpom joining Brighton on loan for the rest of the season, Bruce’s main target now appears to be Hogan.
The Midlands giants are 13th in the Championship and nine points adrift of the play-off places after an underwhelming first half of the season.
But they have the chance to claw back some ground on Tuesday night when they travel to Brentford for a league fixture at Griffin Park.
Football Insider verdict:
Villa have a brilliant opportunity to take advantage of Bilic’s change of heart and land a striker whose goals record is highly impressive. The jury is out on whether Hogan is worth £15m, while his injury record is also a concern, but he has the invaluable knack of being in the right place at the right time to put the ball in the back of the net. For Villa, whose 27 league games this season have yielded a miserable 28 goals, such a golden eye is worth its weight in gold.
In other Aston Villa transfer news, this midfielder delivers this message after making a late January switch.
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