Houllier interested in Keane and Piquionne
Gerard Houllier, the new Aston Villa boss, said he wanted to boost his striking force in the upcoming January transfer window. His top targets are Tottenham striker Robbie Keane and West Ham United forward Frederic Piquionne.
The Aston Villa boss has not had an easy time at Villa Park since he joined at the summer; apart from poor results there are a host of players who have confirmed their exit in January. One of them is John Carew, whose departure will undoubtedly affect Villa
for the worse.
His other striking option is Emile Heskey is facing health concerns. Gerard Houllier is well aware that the former England international is way past his prime. In fact, his performance in the World Cup was proof enough that the player should give up football
for good, not just for country.
Not only does Emile Heskey fail to score goals, it seems the striker is perpetually injured. He doesn’t recover from one injury when he picks up another, which means he is never available for selection. That may very well be the reason for Villa’s poor results
and it comes as no surprise that Houllier is looking for other options.
Houllier is looking to add experience to the striking force at Villa park in the winter, which will help with their form. For the Aston Villa boss Robbie Keane and Fredric Piquionne seem to be the perfect additions, that is if the pair choose to come to
the club.
Not only will they bring their class and experience to the club, the players will complement the existing squad. The young players like Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ashley Young are already very impressive but they just need some guidance from older players.
Robbie Keane is 30 years old, the player joined Tottenham two years ago after spending a brief spell at Anfield. Since then, Keane has been unable to maintain a spot in Harry Redknapp’s first team. That has left the Irishman very frustrated and there have
been rumors that he is considering a move away.
Keane has scored five goals in last fourteen appearances and has started just one Premier League match for the Spurs this season. Despite of his age, Keane is still considered an excellent striking option, depending on the team he’s playing for.
On the other hand, Houllier is well acquainted with Piquionne, having been with the player at French side Lyon. The husky West Ham striker has done well at the London side this season, already scoring four goals for the Hammers.
Piquionne has linked up rather well with Victor Obinna, and their partnership is somewhat feared in the Premier League. Sources close to the club have revealed that Avram Grant would be more interested in offloading Carlton Cole and keeping Piquionne.
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