Aston Villa 'determined' to sign Turkish wonderkid
Cameron Smith
- 3 Nov 2023 17:03 GMT
- 3 min read
Aston Villa are “determined” to sign Besiktas youngster Semih Kilicsoy, according to reports in Turkey.
Unai Emery’s side made an approach during the most recent summer transfer window, but were unable to reach an agreement for the 18-year-old forward.
However, Villa’s sporting director Monchi is understood to be a huge admirer of Kilicsoy and is “determined” to sign the teenager.
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In addition, Turkish outlet Fanatik have reported that Kilicsoy is keen on the move and Aston Villa will make an offer that matches Besiktas’ valuation.
Furthermore, Besiktas will reportedly make a decision on whether to sell Kilicsoy once their new board is elected in December.
Kilicsoy scored 20 goals in just 19 games in the 2022-23 U19 Super Lig season and he made four first-team appearances last campaign.
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This year, however, he has become more of a fixture in the senior side and has already played six times, with four of those appearances coming in the UEFA Conference League qualifiers.
He is yet to score a league goal for Besiktas’ first-team, although he netted his first senior goal for the club in the aforementioned Conference League qualifiers in late July.
Aston Villa’s transfer business
Unai Emery’s side recently tied Ollie Watkins down to a new long-term contract following heavy interest from Arsenal.
Furthermore, they also signed Jhon Duran from Chicago Fire in January, with the Colombian acting as Watkins’ back-up in the league and as Villa’s starting striker in Europe.
But, given Emery’s preference to use a two-striker system, any injury to Watkins or Moussa Diaby could leave Villa light on numbers up front and a pursuit of a new forward therefore makes sense.
Kilicsoy’s only league appearance came in Besiktas’ opening day win over Karagumruk, with the youngster not playing a single minute of Super Lig action since then. He has, however, made one brief cameo in the UEFA Conference League group stages.
