Aston Villa are reportedly interested in goalkeeper Douglas Lukjanciks, who has also attracted the attention of Bundesliga champions in waiting Bayer Leverkusen. Lukjanciks is only 16 years old but is an England youth international and, according to the Daily Mail, is being targeted by clubs at home and abroad.
Lukjanciks, who has played four matches for Everton’s in the Under-18s Premier League this season, is due to sign a contract in the summer with the Toffees, but interest from elsewhere mightn’t make it so straightforward. Villa, as well as Tottenham and Southampton, have been linked while, as mentioned, Leverkusen lead a queue of overseas sides who are weighing up a move.
Teenage Lukjanciks has made four appearances for England, in various age groups, most recently in the under 17s against Morocco and Norway in international friendlies at the back end of last year. He also qualifies to play for Latvia but, at club level, it’s claimed that Everton see him in the long-term as being a first-choice keeper for the club.
Being linked with players before they’ve even really started their careers isn’t a new sensation to Villa; they’ve recruited some of the best young talent in the country since NSWE arrived in the summer of 2018 and they’ve granted plenty of investment at academy level. The likes of Josh Feeney, Omari Kellyman, Tim Iroegbunam, Aaron O’Reilly, Lamare Bogarde and Ajani Burchall are among of host of players to sign from elsewhere under NSWE.
Even now, Villa are continuously adding young players to their various squads, and they’re not limiting themselves to the UK, either; Kosta Nedeljkovic, 18, is due to arrive in the summer from Red Star Belgrade. Villa have already recruited Australian goalkeeper Joe Gauci this calendar year to beef up that particular department. Even the first-team signings likes Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers are very much with the long-term in mind, too.
The links with Lukjanciks, then, and the idea that the Lions are always planning ahead for the years to come by targeting quality talent which can be nurtured and fashioned into first-team personnel, shouldn’t come as a surprise.
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