Aston Villa are reportedly leading the race for Charlton Athletic teenager Miles Leaburn ahead of the summer transfer window and the striker could be the next Ollie Watkins at Villa Park.
Could Aston Villa sign Miles Leaburn?
According to Football Insider, a number of Premier League sides have scouted the 19-year-old during his breakthrough campaign at Charlton, but it is currently Unai Emery's side who are in pole position.
The 6 foot 5 forward has caught the eye with his performances in League One so far this season, notching 11 goals and two assists in 31 appearances in the third tier, with a solid 6.71 rating from WhoScored for his performances.
Manager Dean Holden has stressed that the youngster is not for sale this summer amid interest from top-flight clubs, and with his contract running until the summer of 2025, Villa may be forced to splash out if they want to bring Leaburn to the Midlands.
However, the prospect of playing Premier League, and potentially European football will surely be difficult for the teenager to turn down, especially if he looks at how Watkins has performed at Villa having first made a name for himself in the lower leagues.
Could Villa land their next Ollie Watkins?
Watkins would progress through the academy at Exeter City and contributed an impressive 26 goals and 17 assists in 28 appearances for the Grecians before joining Brentford in the Championship.
The striker went from strength to strength with the Bees and managed another 49 goals and 17 assists in 143 appearances for the West London outfit, which convinced Villa to spend £28m on him in 2020.
The 27-year-old has hit double figures in every Premier League season since and is now enjoying arguably the best form of his career under Emery, with 14 goals and six assists to his name in the league as Villa target a European finish.
Leaburn will surely be looking at Watkins' career as inspiration that he can make it in the Premier League one day and his goalscoring return and obvious physical attributes suggest that he could be similarly dangerous for Villa in the future.
Holden was full of praise for the teenage forward after scoring in a draw against Wycombe Wanderers last month, which took him into double digits for the season.
He said: “It proves he’s not just a goalscorer. His all-round game, as much as he’s got to learn, is solid. He is not just a fox-in-the-box, he’s not just someone who will run in behind and he’s not just a target man.
“All of those different parts of his game will improve because it is his first season in senior football. Why can’t he get to 12 or higher than that? He is such a great lad to work with – he wants to improve.
"He doesn’t for one second think he is the finished article, which is really exciting. Huge potential.”
If Leaburn could live up to his obvious potential at Villa, there seems no reason why he couldn't emulate Watkins. As a result, Johan Lange should definitely be looking to bring in the Charlton teen this summer before his stock rises even further.