Aston Villa FC’s reported £25 million move for Watford’s Ismaïla Sarr recently collapsed.
According to reports, a range of obstacles got in the way, which led to Aston Villa eventually withdrawing from the running to sign the 24-year-old Senegalese professional footballer. Now that the winger will not be joining the midlands club, what could it mean for the future of the club?
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About Sarr
Ismaïla Sarr is a 24-year-old men’s professional footballer who currently plays for Championship side Watford.
The winger was born in February 1998 in Saint-Louis, Senegal, and he has also played for his country since 2016, scoring a total of 10 goals in 47 appearances.
He played his first senior football game for Metz in the 2016/17 Ligue 1 season before joining and playing for Rennes from 2017-2019.
He then left France to play in England in 2019, joining Watford, who at the time was in the Premier League (the top division of men’s professional football in England).
He won the Coup de France in the 2018/19 season and was the runner-up in the African Cup of Nations when playing for his country.
On a personal level, he won the UEFA Europa League Goal of the Season in the 2018/19 season. Football fans are still taking to online sports betting sites to place a wager on Ismaïla Sarr, and other anticipated moves in the transfer market.
Why Sarr’s transfer move collapsed
According to some media reports, Aston Villa’s attempt to sign Ismaïla Sarr from Watford fell through for a couple of reasons.
The two parties inevitably failed to agree upon personal terms, and it is also said that Villa’s manager, Steven Gerrard, had second thoughts about bringing him to the club and planned to move in a different direction instead.
The Senegalese international has already completed his medical, but it just wasn’t meant to be.
The Championship side had initially agreed upon a £27 million deal that would see him move to the Midlands team, but it all fell through in the closing stages.
Some have even suggested that during the medical, concerns were raised about Sarr’s hamstring.
Previous issues with ongoing hamstrings set alarm bells ringing, and this is most likely the main reason why Aston Villa decided to pull out.
Aston Villa’s season
In their opening Premier League game against Bournemouth on August 6th, the Lions lost 2-0 at home to Bournemouth.
They then went on to beat Everton 2-1 at home on August 13th, before losing 1-3 away to Crystal Palace on August 20th. Their next Premier League game is at home to West Ham on August 28th, and then away to Arsenal on August 31st, before facing Manchester City at home on September 3rd.
Aston Villa are currently in 13th place in the Premier League with just three games played and 3 points. It’s still too early to tell, but it’s highly unlikely they will finish in a top 6 position.
They will more than likely finish just above mid-table.
However, anything can happen from now until the end of the season. Just look at when Leicester did the impossible and ended up winning the Premier League in the 2015-16 campaign.
Could Villa shock everyone and be a serious title contender?
Odds on Aston Villa to win the Premier League
If you’re wondering how Aston Villa might fare in the Premier League season, you may want to look at the odds that most major sports betting sites currently have them priced at.
For example, the average odds for Aston Villa to win the league are around +50,000 in American/Moneyline odds, which is 500/1 in UK fractional odds, and 501.00 in European decimal odds.
In comparison, the current favourites to win the league are Manchester City, with much more favourable -265 odds (which is 4/11, or 1.38).
Liverpool are currently second favourites to win, just in front of third favourites Arsenal.
Aston Villa arrivals and departures so far in 2022
The club’s biggest signing so far in 2022 was for Sevilla centre-back Diego Carlos for a reported fee of £27.90 million.
Villa also spent £18.00 million to secure left winger Phillip Coutinho and £3.5 million on AS Roma goalkeeper Robin Olsen.
Some of the other new arrivals included Ludwig Augustinsson (left-back from Sevilla) and Boubacar Kamara (defensive midfielder from Marseille).
Aston Villa got rid of Carney Chukwuemeka (central midfielder) to Chelsea for £16.20 million, Matt Target (left-back) to Newcastle for £15.75 million, and Trezeguet (left-winger) to Trabzonspor for £3.6 million.
