Aston Villa: Emery wants to sign “one of the best wing-backs in Europe”
The player’s price tag has just skyrocketed…
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery is keen to upgrade in the full-back areas come January and he has one particular target in mind, but any deal to bring his man to Villa Park will now be complicated, according to reports.
What’s the latest news involving Aston Villa?
Cited by Birmingham World, Villans boss Emery has explained how his side managed to annihilate Brighton & Hove Albion by a score of 6-1 last weekend in the Premier League and why he deployed certain tactical processes during the encounter, stating: “Our game plan was to try to avoid duels, try to avoid the defence against us, finding the players we can fight against them man-to-man, two against two.”
He then added: “When they were doing man-to-man on the pitch we tried to avoid the first build-up, playing with the players they have close to our goalkeeper and playing over, faster than the other players. They were the strikers, they were John McGinn, Nicolo Zaniolo. We did fantastic with Ollie Watkins fighting with the defence and Moussa Diaby. Then we needed to try to keep ball possession and build.”
Next up for Aston Villa is a home tie against HSK Zrinjski Mostar in matchday two of their Europa League campaign; nevertheless, Emery will have to go without several first-team players at Villa
Park. As per Birmingham Live, Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia, Moussa Diaby, Jacob Ramsey and Boubacar Kamara will all miss the clash due to various concerns.
Nevertheless, Leon Bailey, Tim Iroegbunam, Diego Carlos and Bertrand Traore could all play some part against the Bosnian outfit as Aston Villa seek their first victory in continental competition this term following a 3-2 defeat against Legia Warsaw in their group opener.
Who could Aston Villa sign?
According to Kicker, transcribed via Sport Witness, Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong has emerged as a target for Aston Villa and Emery ahead of the January transfer window, having eyed up a move during the summer.
NSWE will regret not making a move then though, as the Amsterdam-born ace has since penned a contract extension at the BayArena that will tie him to the Bundesliga side until the summer of 2028, and has also seen him fall in line with the highest earners at Bayer Leverkusen.
TEAMtalk are now claiming that Bayer Leverkusen would want to recoup £60 million for the former Celtic man in the event of his departure given his refreshed contract situation. Manchester United, Barcelona and Bayer Leverkusen have all shown interest in Frimpong and his old club, Celtic, will be entitled to 15% of any fee the German side recoup due to a sell-on clause inserted into his contractual agreement.
The 22-year-old has started the new campaign in commendable fashion, registering two goals and three assists in his opening eight appearances across all competitions for Bayer Leverkusen, as per Transfermarkt.
Football Talent Scout – Jacek Kulig has previously labelled Frimpong “one of the best wing-backs in Europe” and it is easy to see why, given that he has averaged one shot, 1.5 key passes and 1.2 completed dribbles per match in the Bundesliga this season, according to WhoScored.
Despite his talents, it is conceivable that Aston Villa could be priced out of a move due to his new contract, though we will see what happens on that front.
