Aston Villa exploring deal to sign £22m sensation

Aston Villa struck gold when they paid an initial fee of £8m to sign forward Morgan Rogers from Middlesbrough in the January transfer window in 2024.

The English youngster had yet to fulfill his promising potential after leaving Manchester City to sign for the Championship side, but Unai Emery placed his faith in the attacking midfielder.

Since joining the Villans, the 23-year-old star has scored 31 goals and provided 29 assists in 125 matches in all competitions for the club across two-and-a-half seasons.

Now, the England international is being linked with a £100m move to Premier League champions Arsenal this summer, which would represent a colossal profit on the £8m that they paid Boro for his services.

Rogers is not the only young player whom the club have hit the jackpot with, though, as they also banked millions on Jhon Duran after signing him from the MLS.

Aston Villa racing to sign World Cup star

The Villans paid £18m to sign the Colombian striker from Chicago Fire in January 2023, and he scored 20 goals in 78 matches in all competitions before being sold to Al Nassr for £64m last year.

Now, the club are reportedly looking at a move for a star who could be their next version of Rogers or Duran, as another young prospect turned into a huge asset.

According to Corriere della Sera, as relayed by Sport Witness, Aston Villa are one of the clubs in the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen left winger Karim Alajbegovic.

The report claims that Atalanta, Newcastle United, Sunderland, and the Villans are all among the teams chasing a deal to snap the Bosnia international up after his exploits at the World Cup this summer.

It adds that Villa are exploring a deal to sign the 18-year-old talent to bolster their squad, after Bayer Leverkusen opted to exercise their option to sign him back from RB Salzburg in the summer transfer window.

The outlet reveals that the German club are open to instantly selling him again and are looking for a fee in the region of £22m, although that could change if he continues to shine at the World Cup.

Why Karim Alajbegovic could be like Rogers and Duran

Villa made a £46m profit on Duran and could end up making a £92m profit on Rogers this summer if they sell him to Arsenal, which shows how profitable it has been for the club to identify young and hungry players who are on the way up in their careers.

Alajbegovic is coming off the back of an impressive season with Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga, but he is yet to prove himself on a regular basis in one of Europe’s major leagues, just as Rogers and Duran had not prior to their moves to Villa Park.

The teenage sensation played against the Villans in the last game of the league phase of the Europa League at the end of January, which may have been when he first caught their eye.

Villa won the match 3-2 at Villa Park, thanks to goals from Rogers, Tyrone Mings, and Jamaldeen Jimoh, but Salzburg took a two-goal lead and the Bosnian star assisted the second goal.

He also scored nine goals and created nine ‘big chances’ in 22 starts in the Bundesliga, on top of his two goals and one assist in four starts in the Europa League for Salzburg before Leverkusen bought him back.

Now, he is shining on the world stage for his country after scoring a stunning goal against Qatar in the World Cup earlier this week, setting up a clash with the USA in the round of 32 next week.

The fact that he has shown his quality in Austria, in the Europa League, and in the World Cup at the age of just 18 shows that he has both the mentality and the ability to thrive on the biggest stages, and he has so many years left ahead of him to develop and improve further.

That is why Villa must push to win the race for his signature in the coming weeks, because the teenage star could end up becoming their next Rogers and Duran if Emery can get him to fulfill his potential at Villa Park.

Alajbegovic could be another exciting forward added to the squad with the potential to deliver goals and assists on a regular basis before earning a mega-money move in the future.