Aston Villa have backed Unai Emery in the summer window so far as they have brought in three new signings and smashed the club’s transfer record.
Who have Aston Villa signed this summer?
The Villans brought in Belgium international Youri Tielemans on a free transfer from Leicester City, who were relegated to the Championship, as their first piece of incoming business.
Monchi then worked his magic to secure a £35m deal to sign central defender Pau Torres from Spanish side Villarreal before the club splashed out a record £51.9m to sign Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen.
They looked set to bring in a fourth in the form of Jack Harrison on Sunday night as Fabrizio Romano reported that they hijacked Everton’s deal for the then-Leeds United forward.
However, the Villans opted against a move for the former Manchester City man as he is due to be out injured for a number of weeks and the 26-year-old dynamo completed a switch to the Toffees on Monday morning.
Emery and Monchi could now forget all about Harrison by pursuing a deal for reported transfer target Joao Felix, who the club are considering a swoop for.
How good is Joao Felix?
The Portugal international is a terrific forward who can play in a multitude of roles across the frontline, which would make him a versatile option for the head coach.
Like now-Everton gem Harrison, Felix is capable of being deployed on either flank or through the middle as a supporting striker or as a centre-forward.
This suggests that he has the adaptability and skillset to be used in the positions that Emery was eyeing the English magician for before his move to Goodison Park.
Felix, who scored four goals in 11 Premier League starts on loan at Chelsea during the second half of last season, could offer more to the Villans than the ex-Whites at the top end of the pitch.
The talented maestro has produced 25 goals and 13 assists in 55 LaLiga starts for Atletico Madrid to date, which works out as a goal contribution every 1.45 starts on average.
Meanwhile, Harrison managed 21 goals and 16 assists in 100 Premier League starts for Leeds, which is a direct involvement every 2.7 starts on average.
These statistics suggest that Felix, who scout Jacek Kulig described as a “nightmare” for defenders, could make a greater impact than the English attacker in the final third due to his ability to score and assist goals at a more impressive rate.
The Portuguese maestro’s underlying numbers also back up his superiority. Over the last 365 days, the 5 foot 11 ace ranks within the top 6%of his positional peers among the Men’s Big Five League and European competitions for progressive passes and progressive carries per 90 respectively.
Meanwhile, Harrison does not rank higher than the top 39% in either statistic and is in the bottom half of players in his position for progressive passes per 90 over the last 365 days.
Therefore, Felix could provide more quality in deep possession by driving the team up the pitch, either by carrying the ball forward or finding teammates between the line.
This is why Emery could forget all about Harrison by securing a deal for the Atletico Madrid forward as he has the potential to be a sublime signing for Villa as an alternative to the new Everton wide man.
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