Unai Emery’s Dream Window Must Include £50m Barca Flop & ‘Silent Assassin’

Last season saw Aston Villa enjoy their highest Premier League finish since Brian Little steered them to fourth place in 1996. Now under the management of Unai Emery, Villa are about to embark on their first Champions League campaign. The club has a proud European history, winning the European Cup in 1982, before it was rebranded to the Champions League, the year after they won the old First Division title.

Emery has already brought in Ross Barkley from Luton, Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea from Juventus, and are rumoured to be very close to completing the signing of Amadou Onana. He is now looking to strengthen his squad even further to enable the Midlands club to compete domestically and in Europe, but which players would represent good business for Villa and Emery?

Sales

Moussa Diaby, Leander Dendoncker

With Morgan Sanson and Douglas Luiz having departed to Nice and Juventus respectively, Emery has already been busy clearing the deck at Villa. Moussa Diaby is on the verge of leaving Villa Park too, with Saudi Arabian side Al-ittihad rumoured to pay in the region of what Villa paid for the player when they brought him for just shy of £52m from Bayer Leverkusen. While Diaby has shown glimpses of his talent in England, all too often his form hasn’t quite lived up to his original billing and although not desperate to sell the Frenchman, the offer they have received for him is deemed simply too good to turn down, providing vital funds for strengthening the side and balancing the books.

Another player that could be out the door this summer is Leander Dendoncker. The Belgian joined Villa Park from Wolves in 2022 but has failed to make an impact in his two years, making just 36 appearances and was eventually loaned out to Napoli where he also struggled for minutes. The player will also be keen on a move with Everton reportedly interested in the versatile midfielder.

Signings

Joao Felix, Jonathan David, Stranhinja Pavlovic, Jack Grealish

Joao Felix is very much on Emery’s radar. Still an Atletico Madrid player, the Portugal international has spent the last two years on loan at Chelsea and then Barcelona. The fee for him is likely to be in the region of £50m. His tricky play and ability to create would be very beneficial to Ollie Watkins. Felix scored 10 goals for Barcelona last season – they too, are rumoured to be interested in the attacker, so Villa would need to act quickly. Unfortunately for Felix, he missed his penalty during Portugal’s penalty shoot-out defeat to France in Euro 2024. Emery would know exactly how to restore his confidence at Villa Park. The money from a potential Diaby transfer could go a long way in financing this deal, but Felix isn’t the only player Emery has his eye on.

While Felix would be a great to foil for Villa striker Ollie Watkins, he too, is rumoured to be the subject of a bid from Arsenal. So Villa have been linked with a £30m bid for Lille’s Canadian striker Jonathan David. Aged 24, David had an eye-catching season in France last year, scoring 26 goals. Emery also has eyes on his back four, with Villa, along with many other clubs, being linked with a £25m bid for 23-year-old Serbia and Red Bull Salzburg centre back Strahinja Pavolvic, who would be a valuable asset as the club try to manage the additional games in the Champions League.

Although less likely, rumours persist that Jack Grealish could be on his way back to Aston Villa. Having won it all at Manchester City, but losing his place in the City team last season, which saw him miss out on a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad, would a move back to Villa, where he would play regularly and be somewhat more indulged in a freer role, be appealing to Grealish? It might be for Villa if the price was right, although this potential transfer is speculation at present.

Stats via Transfermarkt and Fbref.com.