Aston Villa could potentially look at signing Rangers' Ryan Kent before the transfer window closes, believes journalist Josh Holland.

The Midlands club recently watched a deal for Watford winger Ismaila Sarr collapse, and Holland thinks that could now see them turn to someone like Kent.

What is the latest transfer news involving Villa?

Villa were trying to sign Sarr and a transfer looked close at one point.

Earlier this month, Sky Sports reported that the Villans had agreed a £25m deal with Watford to purchase the 24-year-old.

However, as per the same outlet, things collapsed after Steven Gerrard's growing reservations over the proposed transfer. The Villa manager will now have to look elsewhere if he still wishes to improve his side out wide.

If Kent is the man Gerrard decides to turn to, he could cost around the same fee Villa were going to pay for Sarr. According to Football Insider, the 25-year-old has a £20m release clause in his current contract.

What has Holland said about Kent and Villa?

Holland has named Kent as a potential alternative to Sarr for Villa following the Premier League club's decision to pull out of a deal to sign the Watford man.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said: "The Sarr move apparently didn't work out because of Gerrard's decision to go against the move, so it's got to be someone that Gerrard prefers.

"You could look at potentially Ryan Kent at Rangers. They've obviously worked together and I think he's proven himself the last couple of games against PSV [Eindhoven] with his quality."

Would Kent improve Villa's fortunes?

Villa have made a poor start to the season, something Gerrard recently spoke about.

Following their 1-0 loss to West Ham over the weekend, which is already their third of the campaign, the 42-year-old said (via Daily Mail): "I’ve been in the game long enough, if you lose three games out of four it’s not the start the supporters want, it’s not the start that I want. So yes, of course I understand the reaction [fans booing the players]."

Gerrard's former player Kent, though, does not seem like the sort of individual who is going to drastically improve the side.

The Englishman has his qualities, with The Athletic's Jordan Campbell hailing him as an "incredible" athlete. But is he really better than what Villa have already got? Given that Gerrard has the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Leon Bailey to call upon, the answer is probably not.

The former is a Brazil international, while the latter can be productive in the final third when he is fit. During his final season at Bayer Leverkusen, Bailey came up with over 20 goal contributions in all competitions.

All in all, while Kent would not necessarily be a bad signing, he would not be the answer to all of Villa's problems.