Barcelona weighing up surprise move for Premier League striker: Reports
Barcelona are reportedly interested in signing Aston Villa striker Jhon Duran after failing to sign Amadou Onana from the Premier League club. Duran joined Aston Villa in January 2023 from MLS outfit Chicago Fire FC. The Colombian striker has been prolific ever since he was brought to Villa Park, registering 13 goals in 56 matches for the club across all competitions.
Duran has also shown his penchant for scoring goals this season, netting four in five league games. The Colombian has been on the scoresheet in all Premier League games for Aston Villa this season, barring their 2-0 loss against Arsenal.
According to a report by El Nacional (via Team Talk), Barcelona's management sees Duran as a sensation after his prolific start to the Premier League 2024-25 campaign. The report also states that sporting director Deco has initiated contact with the Premier League side to discuss a potential move for Jhon Duran.
Duran was heavily linked with a transfer away from Aston Villa in the last summer transfer window, with director Damian Vidagany claiming that as many as 40 clubs were interested in the Colombian.
It remains to be seen if Barcelona can match Villa's financial demands given the former's well-documented financial struggles. In the summer transfer window, Villa reportedly set the asking price of the striker at £40 million, but that will likely be raised given the player's rich vein of form.
Barcelona have Robert Lewandowski, but they will need young blood for the future
At present, Barcelona have the services of Robert Lewandowski up front. The Polish marksman joined the La Liga outfit from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2022 after an eight-year spell where he registered 344 goals and 73 assists in 375 games for the Bavarian club.
Since joining the Catalan club, he has scored 65 goals and provided 19 assists in 102 games across competitions. This season, Lewandowski has recorded six goals and two assists in seven matches for the Catalan giants.
However, the Polish striker is currently 36 years old and the club will need to replace him with young blood in the coming years.
The Catalan giants got Vitor Roque from Athletico Paranaense in January 2024 with the hope of making him Lewansowski's successor. However, the Brazilian struggled to get minutes under former coach Xavi - registering just two goals in 16 appearances last season across competitions.
He has since been loaned out to La Liga outfit Real Betis where he has scored one goal in four appearances so far. Barcelona will hope to secure the services of Jhon Duran to secure their attack in the absence of Robert Lewandowski.