Aston Villa have been incredibly busy on the transfer front this summer, making eight signings to date.
Fabrizio Romano_Aston Villa actively in pursuit of ‘expensive‘ player who’s Unai Emery’s ‘dream’ target – Fabrizio Romano
Amadou Onana, Ian Maatsen, Cameron Archer, Jaden Philogene, Samuel Iling-Junior, Lewis Dobbin, Enzo Barrenechea and Ross Barkley have all joined the Villans this summer.
Villa have also sold four players – Douglas Luiz, Tim Iroegbunam, Morgan Sanson and Viljami Sinisalo – and let Philippe Coutinho leave Villa Park on loan.
It doesn’t look as though the Villans are done yet in terms of incomings, with Fabrizio Romano now giving an update about Unai Emery’s “dream target”.
Aston Villa still there for Joao Felix
The player in question is Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix, who has emerged as a top target for Villa in recent weeks.
Romano, taking to X, says the Villans “keep contacts active” for the 24-year-old Portugal international, who is the “dream target” for Emery.
The transfer insider acknowledged that a deal is “not easy” and an “expensive package” is required to bring Felix to Villa Park, but the Villans are “still there”.
Romano also provided an update on Jhon Duran, saying negotiations with West Ham over the Colombia international are in progress and he wants the move.
Emery hoping to get Felix firing on all cylinders
Felix is a player blessed with incredible talent and is absolutely unplayable when he’s in top form.
However, Felix’s career has failed to live up to the heights many expected when he first burst onto the scene.
Things simply haven’t worked out for him at Atletico, while loan moves to Chelsea and Barcelona have done little to revive the attacker’s career.
That said, Emery clearly knows what he’s doing, and if he believes Felix will be perfect for Villa, then the club must do all they can to get the player.
Fabrizio Romano says Unai Emery has identified the ‘perfect’ signing for Aston Villa
Aston Villa’s transfer business in recent years has been nothing short of being absolutely brilliant, especially since the arrival of Unai Emery as their new gaffer.
Villa have gone from being relegation contenders under Steven Gerrard to being Champions League qualifiers under Emery.
Villa’s transformation has been incredible, and after getting so much right, Unai Emery has earned the right to be trusted in the transfer market.
According to Fabrizio Romano, speaking on the Here We Go Podcast, Emery has now identified who he believes would be a perfect signing for Aston Villa.
Indeed, according to Romano, Emery believes that Joao Felix would be the perfect addition to this Villa squad.
Unai Emery thinks Joao Felix would be perfect
According to Romano, Emery is absolutely convinced about Joao Felix’s ability.
“They want to sell Joao Felix on a permanent transfer. There is interest from Aston Villa, especially Unai Emery,” Romano said.
“Unai Emery is a big fan of Joao Felix he’s convinced that Joao Felix in his idea of football could be a perfect player, but it’s a very complicated deal for Aston Villa because the transfer fee is very expensive and the salary is very important.”
How Joao Felix got on at Chelsea
Joao Felix is a very talented player. After all, you don’t play for the likes of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid if you’re not a top player.
However, the one concern around Felix is how well-suited he is to Premier League football.
Indeed, Felix has been here before, spending half a season at Chelsea during the 2022/23 campaign.
Felix did fairly well at Chelsea, netting four goals in 16 appearances in a dysfunctional team, and perhaps in a system that is more suited to the way he plays, the attacker would be able to showcase his abilities further.
If Emery thinks that Felix would be the perfect signing for Aston Villa, the Midlands club need to do all they can to sign him.
Joao Felix would be a fantastic replacement for Moussa Diaby.
Leave a Reply