Aston Villa must pull out all the stops to sign Nicolas Jackson after his impressive cameo in Chelsea's 3-0 victory over AC Milan on Saturday. The Birmingham outfit have registered their interest in the 25-year-old striker and held talks with their Premier League rivals over a deal this summer. This comes amid Villa's concerning lack of quality options up top, which has been exposed in pre-season with Ollie Watkins yet to return to the squad. Yet, while Evann Guessand and Tammy Abraham have been struggling under Unai Emery, Jackson delivered an impressive display off the bench against AC Milan. The Senegal international proved to be a menace up top and barely put a foot wrong in the victory. Now, Aston Villa must look to bring him in before the transfer window closes. Nicolas Jackson produced outstanding cameo vs AC Milan. Coming on for Danny Welbeck with around 30 minutes left to play, Jackson heavily impressed. According to Fotmob on 8 August, the striker created two chances, including one big chance, completed 100 per cent of his passes, had one shot, completed both of his attempted dribbles, won two fouls and even won all four of his attempted ground duels. Therefore, Jackson clearly caused plenty of issues against one of Serie A's best sides in just over 30 minutes. Now, with Villa clearly lacking a quality striker that will compete with Watkins this season, the Chelsea star has now shown exactly why a bid needs to be placed. Jackson is clearly capable of making an impact off the bench, something that Villa and Emery do not possess as it stands. Aston Villa have been heavily linked with a move for Tottenham's Pape Sarr this summer. The midfielder has reportedly been identified as a potential target in the remaining weeks of the window, with the club being huge admirers. Football Insider has since exclusively revealed that Spurs will demand £30million for Sarr this summer if they are to part with the midfielder. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen if Villa are prepared to meet this price tag, or if they will simply move on to other targets as the transfer window nears its conclusion. League standing (final 2025 table -- new season not yet under way): 4th in Premier League, 65 pts, 19W-8D-11L from 38 games, recent form WWDLL. Goals this season: 56 scored, 49 conceded (+7 goal difference). Title race: 20 points behind leaders Arsenal. Last result: Manchester City 1-2 Aston Villa (2026-05-24). Recent form (last 5): 3W-2D-0L (WWWDD, most recent first); on a 3-game winning run. Next fixture: vs Hull City (away, 2026-09-05). Currently sidelined: Amadou Onana, John McGinn.