In a recent report, Eurosport stated that Aston Villa are set to rival West Ham United for Flamengo striker Gabriel Barbosa during the January transfer window. It is understood that the Villans are eyeing a short-term loan move for the Brazilian centre-forward next month.
Gabriel Barbosa’s Excellent Numbers In Brazilian Football
The 25-year-old had proven himself to be a consistent goal-scorer in Brazilian football in the previous campaign when he produced several match-winning displays as the focal point of Flamengo’s attack. Barbosa banged in 29 goals and provided nine assists in 43 appearances for the Brazilian side last season across various competitions.
The South American marksman performed well to average 3.6 shots and 1.1 key passes per 90 minutes in the Brazilian Serie A. He was even tidy when distributing the ball in the attacking third of the field, as evidenced by his pass success rate of 82.5% in the top tier of Brazilian football (stats via whoscored).
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What Will Gabriel Barbosa Add To Aston Villa’s Team?
Barbosa has proven his value as an unforgiving finisher in the final third last season. He excels at creating a yard of space for himself to get a few shots in on-target. The 17-time Brazil international can even orchestrate a few decent chances for others around him and usually works his socks off when running the channels in the opposition half. He usually operates as a centre-forward but is versatile enough to fill in as a right-sided wide player if needed.
A striker of Barbosa’s attacking prowess will undoubtedly be an excellent acquisition for the Villans if they can devise a way to get a deal done for him this winter.
The Flamengo whizkid will add a lot of goals and dynamism to Steven Gerrard‘s attack and could go on to form a lethal attacking partnership with Ollie Watkins at Villa Park in the coming seasons.
At 25, Barbosa’s best years are ahead of him, so Gerrard can expect him to make an immediate impact if he can lure the talented forward to the West Midlands club during the January transfer period.
