Micah Richards has urged Aston Villa to consider signing Villarreal and Chile striker Ben Brereton Diaz in January, amid reports that Leeds United could look to make a surprise move next month.
Brereton Diaz, 24, was a target for Leeds prior to his move to Villarreal from Blackburn in the summer. It comes after scoring 36 Championship goals in two seasons. But at Villarreal, Brereton Diaz is struggling.
In his 17 games for his new club, Brereton Diaz has failed to score. He thought he got off the mark in a recent clash against Sevilla, scoring in the final seconds to win 2-1 – only for the goal to be ruled out.
Transfer expert Ben Jacobs reported earlier this month that Brereton Diaz could re-emerge on Leeds’ radar next month, with Villarreal perhaps open to his exit – as he continues to struggle to find his form.
Now, pundit and former Villa man Richards has told The Rest Is Football podcast that Villa should look at signing “someone left-field”, in the form of Brereton Diaz. A striker to provide cover for Ollie Watkins.
“You know who I’m going to go with, someone left field and you guys probably haven’t seen him play, no disrespect, because we don’t watch a lot of Championship,” Richards said, in TRIF’s latest episode.
“We’re always working, so we the highlights but don’t always see the games. Someone like a [Ben] Brereton Diaz who was at Blackburn. Someone who’s just below a level, that’s what I’m trying to say.”
Micah Richards urges Villa to sign Leeds target Ben Brereton Diaz
It will be interesting to see if Brereton Diaz will be open to leaving Villarreal in January. He may feel that he needs time to adapt and that could be the stance of Villarreal, too. He is a top striker, yet to show it.
A move to Villa would see Unai Emery raid his old side and again, Villarreal may be averse to doing any business with their former manager. He would be back-up at Villa. At Leeds, he might be first choice.
Leeds have Joel Piroe and Georginio Rutter starting at the moment. But Brereton Diaz offers cover both on the left, and up top. If the likes of Patrick Bamford and Joe Gelhardt decide to go, he may be a target.
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