According to the reports from the Mirror (18 June, page 46), Aston Villa had put in a bid of £7.5m bid for Luton Town’s full-back James Justin. However, the bid was rejected by the newly promoted Championship side as Luton are set to stand firm for their prized fullback. The Villans are competing with Leicester City who are now set to move in with a £12m bid.
It remains to be seen whether the Hatters would accept the bid from Leicester. Justin had a remarkable season for his side in League One, and he earned a place in League One’s team of the season as a left back. Even though he is a right-footed left back, he managed to come up with nine assists in all competitions.
The 21-year-old is equally adept at playing as a right back, so that is the reason why clubs are coming up with multi-million pounds bid for him. The Villans have already shown their ambition in the transfer market as they have wrapped up the signings of Wesley Moraes, Kortney Hause, Jota and Anwar El-Ghazi.
Why should Justin look to move to Aston Villa?
After an impressive season in the League One, the defender is being linked with a Premier League move. At this stage of his career, the most important thing for Justin should be game time, and it is clear as daylight where the young fullback would find more game time.
Leicester City have two terrific fullbacks in the form of Ben Chilwell and Ricardo Pereira on both the flanks. There is no way that the Luton defender would be able to dislodge the two established and proven players from their position. On the other hand, Justin would be an upgrade for the Villans over Neil Taylor, who is a left back. Therefore Justin himself should look to move to Aston Villa to further his development.
Should Smith come up with an improved offer?
The money being thrown around in this transfer window is crazy, and as a football purist, we thought it would almost be unimaginable to think about paying around £12m for a defender who hasn’t even played in the Championship. However, the times are changing, and Justin is being seen as one of the biggest talents in the lower divisions of English football.
The Villans tabled a good offer of £7.5m, but they should go up and match Leicester’s upcoming bid of £12m. It’s still crazy money but his versatility to fill in on both the flanks and his overall ability makes him a top talent.
