According to French newspaper Sport, Gerard Houllier tabled a £10m bid for Lille OSC forward Gervinho in January. The Ligue 1 side are reportedly holding out for £15m for the 23-year-old Ivorian, who can play as a striker, on either flank, or behind the striker. Sound like he could be a preparation to replace anyone to you? Villa were linked to the trickster at the end of last year after he had impressed in brief glimpses of the Ivory Coasts World Cup campaign. I touted at the time that Lille would be after around £10-15m when the price tag of £8m was suggested in October and you can read my report on the player from then here. Apparently Villa are facing tough competition from Bayern Munich who are looking to strengthen after being eclipsed by Dortmund this season, sitting 12 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga. Gervinho’s stats from this season look encouraging. Having played 24 times in the league he has netted 11 at a rate of 1 ever 178 minutes (just under 2 games). However, the fact that he is often deployed in a wider role makes this figure even more impressive and the young prospect has picked up 8 assists along the way. Proven quality and still one for the future, pity a deal couldn’t be done in the window but hopefully it can be resurrected come July!
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