Villa may make Austin bid in attempt to thwart Newcastle United

Tim Sherwood seems to be taking no time whatsoever in replacing his star players who are leaving Aston Villa. With Fabian Delph gone and Christian Benteke halfway out the door, Sherwood has already brought in big signings like Idrissa Gueye and Jordan Amavi. But if a report from the Mirror is to be believed, he may be set to make those look small by offering £15 million to QPR for Charlie Austin. If accepted, the bid would thwart the efforts of Newcastle United, who have apparently not yet met QPR's asking price.

Austin, of course, needs little introduction. After being a late bloomer, he exploded into the Premier League last season and found the back of the net eighteen times in thirty-five appearances. The performance was enough for him to force his way into Roy Hodgson's England squad, and he is widely regarded as one of the top available English strikers. I'm not necessarily sure that he's as good as Christian Benteke, but as far as replacements go this would probably be a pretty good deal. And if Sherwood is successful with his £15 million bid, the price can't be argued with.

Earlier today, James wrote a bit about Austin as a Benteke replacement. There, he said:

Sometimes talent, training and skill cannot top natural instincts and Austin has almost all four of those qualities in spades. Villa should be able to offer him a better supply and a better role than QPR as well as likely being able to offer a bit more money. Austin would fit perfectly in Villa's side and line up well against Agbonlahor or Kozak.

Of course, this is just one report, but it makes a lot of sense. Villa are about to be flush with cash and in need of a striker. There is no more popular target on the market right now than Austin, and with his one-year track record of Premier League success, he looks to be a solid deal. Let's do this, Tim.