Aston Villa remain interested in a long-term target who could give Unai Emery the creative spark he needs in behind Ollie Watkins.
As the 2023/24 campaign drew to a close, Aston Villa could be immensely proud of reaching the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League while qualifying for the Champions League.
Unai Emery has delivered an exceptional campaign at Villa Park but accepts that work must begin to assemble a squad capable of challenging against Europe’s elite.
Despite PSR concerns, Emery and Monchi understand there are a lot of improvements to be made to continue their progression beyond a fourth-place finish last term.
The Villans require a new right-back to displace Matty Cash, a quality winger on the left flank and a creative force to slot in behind Ollie Watkins, with Villa now eyeing up a long-term target to resolve the latter problem.
Aston Villa remain interested in Arsenal’s Emile Smith Rowe
In 2021, Villa saw a £30 million bid rejected for Arsenal attacking midfielder Emile Smith Rowe.
According to GIVEMESPORT, the Midlands club remain interested in the Englishman, three years after seeing their initial bid rejected.
Smith Rowe played just 13 times in the top flight last term as Arteta preferred a midfield trio of Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz.
While the Gunners reportedly recognise his potential, they may need to sell players to navigate financial constraints imposed by the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.
The 23-year-old was valued at £60 million by Arsenal last year as the North London side aligned their valuation towards the fee that saw Mason Mount move to Manchester United for £55 million.
However, after rarely featuring at the Emirates, surely Arteta would consider selling him for a cut-price deal this summer.
Emile Smith Rowe is the creative force Aston Villa crave
Aston Villa currently lack a natural playmaker behind Watkins. Youri Tielemans is more of a deep-lying distributor while Morgan Rogers is best used off the front, not necessarily boasting the creative statistics.
Described by Jamie Carragher as “special”, Smith Rowe is a player who enjoys floating in between the lines and unlocking defences with his creativity.
Although the sample sizes on his most recent campaigns at Arsenal are small due to his lack of minutes, he did previously give the Gunners a new “creative dimension”, with Arteta describing him as a “joy to watch”.
That praise was drawn during Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Luton in April as Smith Rowe recorded his second assist of the campaign and was a complete nuisance to play against.
With Aston Villa’s opponents becoming a lot harder next season as they embark on a Champions League campaign, Emery’s long-term target could provide the Villans with an abundance of quality to feed Watkins.
He could thrive at Villa Park under the Spaniard and get his career back on track after a couple of difficult campaigns at the Emirates.
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