Villa may be looking towards Championship for striker

Aston Villa may be beaten in a race that none of us knew they had entered. Apparently Crystal Palace have become the favorites to secure the services of Norwich City striker Gary Hooper, which may prove to be a problem for Villa who are interested in him as well. Hooper has let the Canaries know that he wants a transfer to keep playing in Premier League, and it seems likely that he'll be leaving for a bit less than the £5 million he came in for.

Now, Hooper didn't have a bad season at Norwich, scoring 8 goals in 23 starts, but this is the first we've heard of any connection between him and Aston Villa. And he won't be coming on a free transfer, either. While Villa do have funds to spend in the summer, it would be surprising to see them use the limited money on a striker who didn't set the world on fire.

Crystal Palace, you can have Hooper. He's not bad, but he's not what Villa need.