Report: Tottenham striker Adebayor, not Austin, is Sherwood's top target

Just minutes ago, I wrote about reports saying that Aston Villa were planning on launching a £15 million bid for QPR and England striker Charlie Austin. It was a move that made plenty of sense, but as I noted, we had just the one report saying that. Take it for what you will, etc. And now we've got a pretty compelling piece of evidence saying that the report was rubbish. Gregg Evans, of the Birmingham Mail, is saying that Austin "is not under consideration."

Alright then. Since taking over full-time Aston Villa reporting duties from Mat Kendrick, Evans has been the best journalist covering the club. His work over the past week while reporting from Portugal was stellar, and he was on top of every development the team had. If he says Sherwood isn't after Austin, I believe him.

Now, of course, he could be wrong. He hasn't been a flawless reporter, after all, but who is? I sort of hope he's wrong, actually, as I think Austin would be a really good fit at Villa. The £15 million reported by the Mirror strikes me as more than fair, and it's money that Villa could easily afford to pay for a good striker. In fact, if there is one position where Villa should cut no corners, it's up front.

In his article, Evans mentions that Tottenham Hotspur's Emmanuel Adebayor is currently Sherwood's top target, but wage demands are holding that deal up. And then there was this amazing quote from Sherwood that I actually believe is more than just posturing: "I have been contacted by a lot of those teams over Europe and offered us some really attractive younger players because they know I am a manager who will give them an opportunity to play."

I mean, if there is one thing that we know for certain Sherwood is good at, it's developing youth. So that would make sense.

Regardless, it seems like things will come to a head in the striker search sooner rather than later, and that can only be a good thing with Christian Benteke almost gone.