Aston Villa will already be looking ahead to the January transfer window as the World Cup plays out in Qatar.
Unai Emery will have the chance to put his mark on his new squad early in his reign having only officially taken over a couple of weeks before the month or so long World Cup break took hold. Though, he did have a handful of games to get to grips with his squad and to work out what he might need in the January window as Villa look to keep any sort of relegation fight at bay.
Villa will already be doing their homework on potential targets, and they may even be scouting some who are competing at the World Cup this winter. With that in mind, we have put together a gallery of the players the Lions have already been linked with ahead of the winter window.
Take a look below...

1. Yeremy Pino - Villarreal
Villarreal star Yeremy Pino has been linked with a move to Villa from Unai Emery’s old club Villarreal. Though, in reality, he would command a huge fee. | Getty Images

2. Samu Chukwueze - Villarreal
Samu Chukwueze is another one of the Villarreal players being tipped to join Emery in the Midlands. This one could be more realistic than the yeremy links. | Getty Images

3. Nicolas Jackson - Villarreal
jackson is one of the latest breakout stars at Villarreal, and he has been tipped to follow Emery to Villa. Villarreal are short of strikers, though, so letting one go seems out of the question in January. | Getty Images

4. Mikel Merino - Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad star Mikel Merino is another player to have been linked with Villa in recent weeks. Again, he wouldn’t come cheap, and especially not in Janusry. | Getty Images