Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive includes Stoke City boss Alex Neil’s comments on Wesley transfer

Alex Neil has spoken about Stoke City’s decision to sign former Aston Villa striker Wesley Moraes.

The 26-year-old signed a one-year deal with the Potters as he looks to prove he can lead the line again following a long-term injury. Wesley suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury on New Year’s Day in 2020, just over a year from signing for Villa for £22million.

He went on to feature just four times in Claret and Blue before loan spells with former team Club Brugge, Internacional and Levante. Since arriving at the bet365 Stadium last week, Wesley made his debut in Stoke’s final friendly against Everton on Saturday.

Speaking about the Brazilian, Neil is optimistic that Wesley can play a significant role in his team ahead of a new season in the Championship. “We’ve lacked a target – we’ve lacked a target since I’ve been here,” Neil told our sister title StokeonTrentLive.

“I think the difficulty we’ve got with any targets as well is the fact that they come at a premium in terms of cost – and not even just wages but transfer fee and all that sort of stuff.

“So you get Wesley who’s obviously been a really good player, suffered a really bad injury, but has had three loans since then, and last season was the most amount of minutes he’s played. He’s in really good shape to be fair to him. His body fat is really, really low.

“He can get up about the pitch certainly much more than what he could maybe two years previously. We’ve got him on a one-year contract and it allows us to have a really good look at him.

“He’s having an opportunity playing a lower level than what he’s been used to – and you don’t get bought for £22m if you’re not a good player. He’s obviously got something there and what he will give us is that target that we require. I think it’s good business for us.”

Villa have shown their intent ahead of the new season with the big-money signing of Pau Torres, and the canny free signing of Youri Tielemans.

There’s also the small matter of a European campaign as Villa prepare to battle with other teams from abroad.

The aim is simple, to finish the highest they have done for some time in the Premier League, and to compete for trophies.

There are exciting visions on and off the field at Villa and this season is the perfect time to realise some of the club’s ambitions.

Join us as we look ahead to an exciting season for Aston Villa with a special edition preview paper.

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