Aston Villa have enjoyed a phenomenal season in the Premier League, with the arrival of Unai Emery turning the club’s fortunes in less than a year.
With just one game remaining, the club have European football in their sights in what has been an emphatic turnaround of events at Villa Park.
Improvement on the pitch isn’t the only thing the four-time Europa League winner has installed at the club, but has brought a pull in the transfer sector due to his impressive CV in European football.
Ahead of the summer window, Villa have been linked to an array of stars around the continent, with one of the latest talents suggested to be Birmingham-bound being one of the 51-year-old’s former players.
What’s the latest on Giovani Lo Celso to Aston Villa?
As initially reported by Fabrizio Romano earlier this month, Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Giovani Lo Celso is wanted at Villa, with the club having “concrete interest” in the Argentinian.
The speculation was relayed earlier this week by The Athletic, who claim the Spaniard is wanting a number eight, with the player on loan at his former club Villarreal potentially being on the horizon for a reunion.
According to Romano’s report last year, Spurs would want around €20m (£17.2m) for the midfielder if he was to be permanently sold. That is significantly down on the £55m they initially paid for him.
What could Giovani Lo Celso bring to Aston Villa?
Hailed as being a “magnificent player” by Sevilla president Jose Castro, the midfielder ranks highly in comparison to Europe’s elite for his form over the past year.
As per FBref, the 27-year-old is comparable to Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne statistically, and ranks in the top 1% of those in his position in Europe for shot-creating actions, averaging 4.85 per 90.
The £100k-per-week star could be a strong figure for Emery to integrate into his plans for Villa’s midfield, with him proving to be a better performer than his current option in fellow Argentine Emiliano Buendia.
The Villa ace has averaged a Sofascore rating of just 6.79 in the Premier League this season, in comparison to Lo Celso’s 7.08 in La Liga, showing the level of consistency in the Villa target’s game.
In the most pivotal aspects of the roles of an advanced midfielder, the Villarreal star comes out on top to Buendia for a range of attributes, as shown by FBref.
Lo Celso averages 7.99 progressive passes per 90, with Buendia scoring 5.12 in that area per 90 over the past year. A similar theme comes through their average number of successful take-ons, with the La Liga man totalling 1.70 to the Villa players’ 0.98 per 90.
While the two comparative attributes showcase the duo’s abilities in moving forward in midfield while on the ball, a critical skill for a midfielder to boast is through passing ability, where Lo Celso averages an 83.6% accuracy to Buendia’s 77.0%.
Securing the signature of his former player could not only provide an upgrade to the talent already on show at Villa Park, but also be key to improving the squad’s depth, by adding players of a similar nature to inspire competition and raise performance.
Only time will tell of Spurs’ intentions with their player this summer, however, Villa will certainly be watching his movements as the end of the 2022/23 campaign nears.