"He's world-class" - Journalist drops big claim on 147-goal striker Aston Villa are monitoring

Aston Villa are not above Flamengo striker Gabriel Barbosa, believes transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Brazilian is one player thought to be on the Midlands club’s radar, and Jones thinks he is good enough for them, describing him as a “world-class” player when it comes to international football.

Barbosa, who is more commonly known as Gabigol, has recently been linked with a move to the Premier League.

According to 90min, Wolves hope to land the 25-year-old this summer as Bruno Lage looks to improve his forward options.

The same outlet also claims that Villa are keeping tabs on Gabigol after registering an interest in him back in the January transfer window.

The former Inter Milan man has been immense for Flamengo, scoring 102 goals in 157 games for the Brazilian side. His career total is currently 147 in 297.

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Jones thinks Gabigol could be a good addition to Steven Gerrard’s squad.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said: “I think Gabigol could be [good enough], to be honest. I mean, he’s a Brazilian No.9. If he’s good enough to get into that set-up, he’s got to be good enough to play for Aston Villa, surely.

“We don’t obviously know yet if he’s Champions League class, but he’s kind of proven that he’s world-class on an international basis, so I feel Gabigol might be a really good get for a club like Aston Villa.”

If Gerrard is looking to bring a new striker to Villa Park this summer, then Gabigol would not be the worst option to consider.

As already mentioned, he has a very good goalscoring record at Flamengo and in Brazil overall, finding the back of the net 43 times across his two spells at Santos.

The kind of form Gabigol has displayed in his