Aston Villa reportedly have an interest in signing Villarreal attacker Samuel Chukwueze.
The Lowdown: Emery’s transfer connection
Last month, it was announced that Unai Emery is the Villans’ new manager following Steven Gerrard’s departure. The Spaniard left Villarreal to join the Midlands club after having a previous spell in the Premier League in charge of Arsenal between 2018 and 2019.
With the January transfer window on the way, it appears that Villa have their eyes set on reuniting Emery with one of his previous players from the Estadio de la Ceramica.
The Latest: Villa eyeing Chukwueze
According to a recent report from Football Insider, Villa and by extension club owners NSWE have set their sights on Chukwueze and are keeping close tabs on his situation with a potential January transfer swoop in mind.
The report adds that the Midlands club’s interest is “concrete” and that they are doing background checks on the player.
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The Verdict: Exciting for Villa
Hailed as an “exciting” player by Mutiu Adepoju, Chukwueze has found the net 29 times in 178 first-team appearances for his current club, delivering 26 appearances in the process.
With 13 La Liga appearances to his name this season, the winger has racked up more successful dribbles (17) than any other player at Villarreal, along with having the highest rate of shot-creating actions per 90 minutes (4.34).
To further highlight his attacking talent, the Nigerian has the second-highest number of key passes (14) at the club and the fourth-highest rate of shots at goal per 90 minutes (2.34).
Having made more appearances under Emery (94) than any of his other coaches throughout his career, the 23-year-old will know what the Villa boss would want from him if he were to follow his previous manager to England.
Taking all that into account, securing a deal for Chukwueze in the upcoming January transfer window would undoubtedly be a very exciting one for the club and their supporters, given his clear attacking talent.
