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Aston Villa in late talks to sign their own version of Conor Gallagher
Aston Villa are in an excellent position at the moment.
Sure, winning the Premier League might be out of reach given their injuries, but Unai Emery’s side stand a great chance of qualifying for the Champions League.
Moreover, the Villans are still in the FA Cup and third in the Europa League, so finally ending their trophy drought feels like a very real possibility.
As if all that wasn’t enough, the club also seem intent on strengthening the squad, and while they missed out on Conor Gallagher, Aston Villa could end up signing the perfect answer to him.
Aston Villa target Gallagher upgrade
This has proved to be a busy month for Aston Villa so far, with Donyell Malen out the door, two teenage talents in, and likely more business to be done.
One top player who looked like he could be on his way to Villa Park at one point was Gallagher.
Unfortunately for Emery and Co, Tottenham Hotspur ended up hijacking the move and secured the former Chelsea man’s services on a long-term deal.
However, fans shouldn’t fret, as the club now appear interested in signing another midfield monster, someone who’d be their answer to the new Spurs man.
At least, that is according to a recent report from journalist John Percy, who claims that Ruben Loftus-Cheek has entered the picture for Aston Villa.
Percy has revealed that, in the aftermath of Boubacar Kamara’s season-ending injury, the Villans are looking for midfield reinforcements and that the AC Milan star is “emerging as [a] potential option for Unai Emery.”
A potential price is not mentioned for the player, but given the fact that his contract expires next summer, it’s unlikely that he’d cost too much.
Those reports have been corroborated by Fabrizio Romano who has revealed in the last 24 hours that the Villans have held “initial talks” about signing the English midfielder.
It might not be the most exciting of transfers, but given the circumstances, Loftus-Cheek could be Villa’s perfect answer to Gallagher.
Why Loftus-Cheek would be the answer to Gallagher
So, while there are certainly some differences between Loftus-Cheek and Gallagher, there always will be, there are more than a few similarities which could make the former Villa’s answer to the latter.
The first of those is where and how they play.
While both have shown an element of positional flexibility in their careers, they are primarily central midfielders.
|
Loftus-Cheek’s versatility |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Position |
Games |
G |
A |
|
Central Midfield |
142 |
12 |
15 |
|
Attacking Midfield |
88 |
14 |
8 |
|
Defensive Midfield |
47 |
0 |
4 |
|
Right Midfield |
29 |
2 |
1 |
|
Left Midfield |
13 |
1 |
2 |
|
Centre-Forward |
3 |
0 |
0 |
|
Second Striker |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
Right Winger |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
Left Winger |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
Centre-Back |
1 |
0 |
1 |
For example, Milan has made 142 appearances in the middle of the park, and the new Spurs star has made 178 appearances there.
Playing in this position has led to both becoming all-action midfielders, the sort of players who do a lot of the dirty work for their team, but are also more than capable of bolting forward and contributing to the attack.
For example, according to FOTMOB, Gallagher took, on average, 2.21 touches in the opposition’s penalty area per 90 in the league last season.
Likewise, the “phenomenal” Loftus-Cheek, as dubbed by journalist Ishan Shah, took 2.44 touches per 90, showing that while both of them start deep, they do tend to get into dangerous areas a similar amount of the time.
Finally, both players have had similar experiences in their careers.
For example, both started out at Chelsea and became regulars in the first team there.
They were then eventually sold to clubs in other top-five leagues before potentially coming back to join another top team in the Premier League.
Furthermore, both midfielders have chalked up a reasonable number of England caps.
The new Tottenham ace has won 22, while Villa’s potential addition has 11 to his name.
Ultimately, it might not be the most glamorous of signings, but given Villa’s need for midfield reinforcements and the similarities to Gallagher, they would be wise to bring Loftus-Cheek in this month.
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