“Would be interested” – Ex-Aston Villa scout says £27m attacker could choose to join Emery

One of Unai Emery’s former players could join him at Aston Villa this summer.

One of Unai Emery’s former players could choose to join Aston Villa from a Premier League rival this summer, according to a former scout.

Aston Villa transfer rumours

After finishing 4th in the 2023/24 Premier League table, Aston Villa are set for a busy 2024 summer transfer window as they aim to make their squad ready to compete with Europe’s elite in the 2024/25 Champions League later this year.

At present, it appears Unai Emery is quite focused on securing some midfield reinforcements this summer. Douglas Luiz and John McGinn have been standout options for the Midlands outfit over the last year and will likely give a good account of themselves in Europe’s premier competition. However, if Villa are to compete well in the Premier League and Champions League simutaneously, they will need quality depth.

In turn, the Villans have already been linked with a number of central midfield options. Despite having an impressive 2023/24 for a fairly lacklustre Chelsea team, Conor Gallagher has been named as a target for Aston Villa, with the club believed to have already entered preliminary negotiations for the Englishman.

However, Gallagher is seemingly not the only Premier League midfielder of interest to Villa, as the Midlands outfit have been credited with an interest in Fulham’s Andreas Pereira recently.

£27m Tottenham attacker could choose to join Unai Emery

Now, a new name has been tipped to link back up with Aston Villa boss Unai Emery ahead of the forthcoming campaign.

The player in question is Giovani Lo Celso, who worked under the Spaniard during the second half of the 2021/22 season when he joined La Liga outfit Villarreal on loan from Tottenham. Lo Celso made 16 league and 6 Champions League appearances under Emery that season as Villarreal made it to the semi-finals of Europe’s top competition before losing out to Liverpool.

While Emery left Villarreal in October 2022 for Villa, Lo Celso spent another campaign on loan in Spain before returning to Spurs for the 2023/24 season. The Argentinian made 22 league appearances this past term but failed to complete 90 minutes once.

Ex-Villa scout Bryan King believes Lo Celso, who has just one year left on his current contract in north London, would be open to linking back up with Emery this summer as Spurs look to sell the South American.

“Emery will be interested in a player he has worked with before,” King told Villa News. “Spurs want to sell him, so as long as the finances are right, I can imagine this is a deal that Villa would be interested in.

“I’m sure Lo Celso would be interested in the move. Regular football at a club playing in the UEFA Champions League? This could suit all parties involved.”

In terms of a potential transfer fee for Lo Celso, Tottenham paid £27m for his services back in 2019, but he is now valued at around £14m by Transfermarkt, suggesting his stock has dipped since his arrival in the Premier League.

But given his relative success in Spain – including under Emery – perhaps he can resurrect his career on these shores.

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