Bid incoming: NSWE plot move for “underrated” £30m Villa target, imagine him & Ake - opinion

Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard is reportedly set to raid former club Liverpool for the signing of defender, Joe Gomez.

According to the Daily Star (via the Express), the Midlands side are said to be ‘pressing ahead’ with their move to bring the 25-year-old to Villa Park, having been heavily linked with a deal this summer.

The report suggests that Gerrard is a ‘huge fan’ of the England international and is readying a £30m bid in order to try and tempt the Merseyside outfit into a sale, with the player facing a ‘dilemma’ over whether to stay at Anfield or depart.

Despite falling down the pecking order under Jurgen Klopp in recent times, the Reds boss is believed to be keen to keep the former Charlton Athletic man at the club for the long-term, with two years still to run on his existing deal.

The 11-cap colossus has undoubtedly endured a difficult period in recent times after falling out of favour for both club and country, having once been tipped to be the Three Lions’ next Bobby Moore by pundit Garth Crooks.

Having missed almost the entirety of the 2020/21 campaign after suffering a knee injury while on international duty, the £16.2m-rated brute was then restricted to a viewing brief again last term, making just four Premier League starts – all of which came as a makeshift right-back.

With Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate ahead of him in Klopp’s centre-back pecking order, the £85k-per-week star has somewhat fallen by the wayside of late, with a departure perhaps best for all parties.

Not that Villa would be acquiring a busted flush, however, with the London-born defender having previously been instrumental in Liverpool’s title triumph in the 2019/20 campaign, notably averaging 0.8 tackles, 1.4