Aston Villa manager Unai Emery is determined to add plenty of quality to his team ahead of the 2024/25 campaign starting in a few weeks.
There is pressure to repeat their fourth-place finish in the Premier League from last term, while plenty of challenges will come in the revised Champions League group stage.
The club have finally brought in Amadou Onana from Everton and in the attacking areas, have been linked with moves for the likes of Nico Williams, Viktor Tsygankov and Jesper Lindstrom recently.
Though, for their next move, could Emery turn closer to home again?
Aston Villa showing interest in Premier League star
According to Ben Jacobs last weekend – who was speaking to GIVEMESPORT – the Midlands side are interested in signing Morgan Gibbs-White this summer, with his arrival more likely than Williams.
The former Wolves starlet could cost around £50m should Emery go ahead and make a more concrete move to sign him in the coming weeks, which may prove to be a stumbling block depending on who else the Spaniard wants to sign.
There is no doubt that he would be a wonderful signing, taking no time to settle in due to his Premier League experience of recent seasons with Nottingham Forest.
Why Morgan Gibbs-White could be Villa’s next Watkins
Villa have signed their fair share of English players from Premier League and Championship sides in recent years, but Ollie Watkins has to go down as one of the finest.
Last season saw the striker score 27 goals in all competitions as he propelled Villa to fourth spot and a place in Europe’s premier club competition.
From a personal point of view, his goalscoring exploits saw the 28-year-old secure a spot in the England squad for Euro 2024, where he scored a wonderful winner against the Netherlands in the semi-final.
Gibbs-White may play slightly deeper as an attacking midfielder, but the Villans would be acquiring another homegrown talent from a fellow English club, as they did with Watkins.
He might not be as prolific as Watkins, but he does have a keen eye for goal, netting six goals while grabbing ten assists for Forest as they retained their top-flight status.
Among his teammates, not only did Gibbs-White record the best average Sofascore rating in the Premier League (7.26), but he also ranked second for goals and assists (15), first for big chances created (16), key passes per game (2) and second for shots per match (1.9), clearly impressing in the final third.
Goals
5
5
Assists
8
10
Big chances created
9
16
Key passes per game
1.9
2
Successful dribbles per game
1.4
1.2
U23 scout Antonio Mango previously hailed the Englishman as being “incredibly underrated” towards the end of 2023, and it is clear he is ready to make the step up to play for a team like Villa next season.
Splashing in excess of £50m for the current Forest sensation may seem like a lot at the moment, but if he joins and immediately hits the ground running, there is no doubt the Villa faithful will get right behind him.
His stats in the Premier League since the start of the 2022/23 season – ten goals and 18 assists – would certainly give Emery more goals from the midfield area, taking some pressure off of Watkins next season.
The next few weeks could see some more developments with this transfer.
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