Despite reinforcing the squad in the winter with the signing of Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa are set for a busy summer in the transfer market.
Unai Emery’s squad does currently lack depth, which was highlighted on Wednesday during the 4-1 defeat to Manchester City.
Furthermore, if the Villans do secure Champions League football, then investment simply has to occur, and it looks like they’re already planning for that outcome.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at a potential summer signing whom Villa know all too well this season.
Villa’s search for an attacker
According to reports from Turkish outlet Sozcu Gazetesi earlier this week, Villa are interested in signing Ernest Muci.
The Albanian forward currently plays for Besiktas, but he only moved to the Turkish side in January from Legia Warsaw.
It’s reported that a European club has already submitted a £17m proposal for the attacking midfielder, which has instantly been rejected.
Therefore, if Emery truly does want to make Muci a Villa player, a large fee will be required, but Besiktas will do all they can to keep hold of him.
Muci could be Watkins’ perfect partner
There’s no two ways about it: Ollie Watkins has arguably been the best centre-forward in the Premier League this season, going to a whole new level of class under the Spaniard.
The England international’s statistics really do speak for themselves and prove just how influential he is at Villa Park, scoring 16 goals and providing ten assists in 30 league starts.
Leon Bailey has also been excellent this campaign, registering eight goals and assists apiece, but the potential signing of Muci could really complete the attack.
Emery’s reported interest in the versatile attacker most definitely comes from the first-hand experience of facing the 23-year-old this season in the UEFA Conference League.
Muci has already played against the Villans twice this campaign in the Conference League group stage, where he impressed with three goals over the two matches.
It seems that the one-time KF Tirana ace is an extremely “dangerous” player, according to journalist Erman Toroglu, as not only can he find the back of the net, but he can create chances as well, as shown by the table below displaying his statistics against Istanbulspor recently.
Goals
1
Key passes
4
Pass accuracy
87%
Successful dribbles
2/4
Ground Duels won
5
Tackles
2
Since arriving in Turkey, Muci has slotted straight into the number ten role at Besiktas, which is somewhat similar to where he would be playing at Villa if he were to join.
The right-footed maestro has a brilliant eye for a pass, as shown by the four key passes, which will be perfect just behind Villa’s number 11 due to his fantastic movement, while the fact that he can score goals also takes some responsibility off the former Brentford striker.
The tricky ace is an extremely well-rounded attacker who will also continuously work off the ball to regain control and possession for his side, which is simply a must for any Emery player. This makes him versatile, meaning that Emery could field him behind Watkins in the second-striker role or in the flexible John McGinn slot at left midfield.
Muci is also a two-footed player who is extremely dangerous in and around the edge of the box, which provides the Villa wide men with an option to cut the ball back as well as firing it towards Watkins, which, in theory, should give Villa’s top scorer more space to work with.
Overall, the Albanian still has plenty to prove within the top European leagues, but based on his profile and the fact he’s scored twice in seven starts for Besiktas, he has the potential to become a quality attacker.
Aston Villa now have offer on the table to sign Napoli captain for Emery
He has plenty of experience at the highest level.
ByTom CunninghamApr 4, 2024