Aston Villa have been linked with a move for Joao Felix over the last few weeks, and a new update has emerged from a reliable source on the club’s pursuit of the player ahead of the January transfer window.
What’s the latest?
According to journalist Dean Jones, the Villans are “in the picture” to sign the Atletico Madrid and Portugal winger.
The transfer expert told GIVEMESPORT: “They’re not the only club that potentially have the chance to sign Joao Felix.
“I think there are others that he would probably choose ahead of them if it were to come to it. But they’re in the picture and, as an Aston Villa fan, I guess that is an exciting place to be.”
Emery can land his own Griezmann
Unai Emery is just getting stuck into his role at Villa Park after joining the club last month and will surely be looking forward to the opportunity to make his own mark on the squad when the transfer window opens next month.
The former Villarreal manager’s predecessor Steven Gerrard had a clearout of the wide forwards at the club during his short tenure in the Midlands, with Anwar El-Ghazi, Trezeguet and Bertrand Traore all shipped out either on loan or permanently.
As a result, Villa’s attacking threat could certainly use some depth and improvements to get them quickly competing for a comfortable top-half finish and ultimately pushing for an ambitious qualifying place for European football.
Felix is definitely the profile of a player who could help the Villains in their pursuit of a high finishing position in the Premier League, as the Portuguese talent is one of the hottest talents in Europe.
The €100m-priced (£87m) Atletico star – who was dubbed “world-class” by football writer Mohammad Butt – ranks in the top 15% of his positional peers across the top five European leagues in 2022 for assists, dribbles completed, interceptions and progressive passes, whilst also ranking in the top 20% for non-penalty goals and shot-creating actions.
In fact, Emery could even land his very own Antoine Griezmann if he can secure the signing of Felix, as the Frenchman was named the most comparable player to the 23-year-old, according to FBRef.
The Atletico Madrid team-mates have shared many similar attributes over the season, so far including assists (three each), pass completion (73.3% v 76.8%, Felix first), aerial duels success rate (46.2% v 43.8%) and shots on target per 90 minutes (1.58 v 1.51).
Signing Felix would be a massive coup for Aston Villa, but they would surely need to provide a very tempting offer for the player, with several Premier League clubs also vying for the young attacker’s signature.