Summary Aston Villa could potentially sign Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo during the transfer window, but they will face competition from AS Roma. Leonardo has shown a clear goal-scoring instinct during his time with Brazilian side Santos, scoring 47 goals across 149 games and impressing with his performance in the U20 World Cup. Emery must act swiftly to secure Leonardo's signature and rectify Villa's lack of goal-scoring depth, following in the footsteps of Juan Pablo Angel who made a big impact at the club.
Aston Villa have had a fair few cult figures grace the club over the previous 20 years, yet has anyone made as big an impact as striker Juan Pablo Angel?
The Colombian frontman joined the club from River Plate back in 2001, costing a club record fee of £9.5m, a staggering amount at the time.
He eventually made 205 appearances in all competitions for the Midlands side and netted an impressive return of 62 goals in that time, including bagging 23 goals in all competitions during the 2003/04 campaign.
Since his departure in 2007, the South American influence has remained at the club, with Unai Emery able to call on the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Emiliano Buendia and Jhon Duran in his bid for success.
The Spaniard could even add to his South American contingent, as Villa have shown interest in Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo.
Could Aston Villa sign Marcos Leonardo?
According to journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Villa are one of the teams who have shown interest in the striker during the transfer window.
Nottingham Forest are also keen; however it appears as though AS Roma are the favourites to lure him to Europe.
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With just a few weeks left of the window, Emery will need to act swiftly in order to secure his signature while swatting away the advances of Roma in the process, with the promising asset believed to be up for grabs for around €15m (£13m).
What could Marcos Leonardo offer Aston Villa?
Aside from Ollie Watkins, no Villa player scored more than seven goals throughout the entirety of the 2022/23 season and with their first Premier League fixture of the new campaign just around the corner, this needs to be rectified.
Leonardo may just have turned 20, yet he has shown a clear goal-scoring instinct during his spell with Brazilian side Santos since making his debut in 2020, scoring 47 goals across 149 games, a decent strike rate.
The youngster has already netted six goals in just 12 league matches during the 2023 season, grabbing two assists also while even creating two big chances and averaging 0.8 key passes per game, suggesting it isn’t only in front of goal where he is effective.
Nathan Joyes lauded the Brazilian as being a “special talent” and judging by his form for Santos, this praise is highly justified.
It isn’t only for his club side where the 20-year-old is showcasing his abilities, as he was one of the bright sparks for Brazil during the recent U20 World Cup.
Leonardo scored five goals in five matches, although it wasn’t enough to power his country to glory, yet he ranked sixth across the whole tournament for overall Sofascore rating (7.44/10), second for goals and fourth for big chances created (three).
It was a stunning competition for the striker, and surely it won't be long before he makes his debut for the senior national side, especially considering his goal-scoring exploits at youth level.
Angel certainly paved the way for more South Americans to take a chance and join Villa and Emery must launch a move for the ‘special’ forward in the hopes of repeating the club's prior centre-forward masterclass from 2001.