Aston Villa sign £17m ex-Chelsea gem and Champions League winner according to wild January transfer prediction
Aston Villa could look to bolster their squad in January after a woeful run of results
Aston Villa’s poor start to the Premier League season continued at the weekend when they surrendered a one-goal lead to draw with ten-man Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
Unai Emery’s side, who looked devoid of creativity and ideas throughout the 90, finally ended their long-wait for a goal by opening the scoring after 67 minutes through Matty Cash, but only managed one further shot on target against the newly-promoted side throughout the 90 minute contest as Sunderland levelled through a Wilson Isidor volley.
It’s the latest in a long line of poor performances from Emery and his team, who look a shadow of the team that we have seen in the last three seasons. Before the start of the season, the Spaniard had averaged 1.81 points per game at Villa Park, yet if it was based just on this season they’d have less than a third of that after averaging 0.6 after five matches.
Emery is under pressure to turn things around, however, it’s worth noting that he’s a proven serial-winner, with plenty of credit in the bank to try and turn things around, particularly if he’s still in charge for the January transfer window. With that in mind, we asked AI’s Grok tool to predict who Villa might target in the winter, as well as the players that could potentially be sold to other clubs.
England international arrives to bolster Aston Villa’s midfield
Grok believes Aston Villa could make a move to sign AC Milan midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The 29-year-old, who was once viewed as a Chelsea wonderkid, has recently earned his first England call-up in seven years under Thomas Tuchel and is someone renowned for his excellent versatility, strength and quality in midfield.
He’s racked up 73 appearances in total for Milan, scoring 11 goals and has helped the team win the Supercoppa Italiana. Loftus-Cheek is under contract until 2027, and according to Caught Offside is being monitored by Villa along with Newcastle United and West Ham. Previous reports have suggested that £17m could be enough to get this particular deal over the line.
AI also expects Aston Villa to try and add further quality in the wide attacking areas. One name considered to be a strong target is South Korean international Lee Kang-In. The right winger scored seven and assisted six in 49 matches last term and featured 11 times en route to Champions League glory.
He’s renowned for his immense flair, pace and technical ability but could seek a transfer which allows him to start more regularly due to the vast competition for places at the Parc des Princes. It’s suggested that the 24-year-old could be signed on loan with a potential option to buy in the summer.
Long-serving defender could depart along with £80m gem
Grok has suggested that Morgan Rogers could leave Villa Park in January amid interest from Chelsea. It claims Villa would seek around 40 to 50 million euros for the player, but realistically based on more recent reports it’s likely that they’d be seeking at least £80m to even consider such a deal.
Elsewhere, it’s also suggested that long-serving defender Tyrone Mings, who joined in 2019, could depart. However, it seems unlikely at this point, baring in mind he’s been near everpresent since the campaign kicked off in August.
Other names that could leave are Ross Barkley to make way for Loftus-Cheek and Emi Buendia, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Bayer Leverkusen in Germany.