Aston Villa failed to secure a new senior addition to strengthen their attacking ranks following Danny Ing’s move to West Ham United last month, with 19-year-old Jhon Duran coming to England for the first time, and Unai Emery will be hoping that he has enough quality in his current squad to see out the Premier League season comfortably.

The Villans are currently 11th in the table, making rapid progress from their vulnerable situation under Steven Gerrard. Their current manager has tallied five wins, one draw and two defeats in his eight top-flight games in charge so far, which will be a huge relief for supporters.

Despite failing to make a midfield signing in January, Villa didn’t rest on their laurels during the transfer window and were linked with a number of exciting prospects over the last month.

One player who was heavily linked with a move to the Midlands was Marseille’s Matteo Guendouzi, a player with whom Emery is very familiar after managing him at the Emirates Stadium when he was in charge at Arsenal.

The 23-year-old departed London in 2021 amid reports that his relationship with current Gunners boss Mikel Arteta broke down, and now the 40-year-old’s loss could be Emery’s gain as Villa are expected to reignite their interest in the France midfielder in the summer.

Across 20 Ligue 1 appearances so far this season, Guendouzi – who was dubbed “formidable” by Juninho Pernambucano – has scored one goal, registered three assists and tallied an 89% pass completion rate, averaging 1.1 shots on goal, 51.3 touches, 1.2 tackles and 3.9 successful duels per game and proving to be a huge presence on the pitch.

Guendouzi is also hugely versatile with his positioning in midfield, offering both a consistent attacking threat and potency in his defensive abilities, which would be incredibly valuable to Emery in his pursuit to improve the progressive play at Villa Park.

In fact, Emery could land his very own Luka Modric by signing Guendouzi, as the Real Madrid machine has been the most comparable player to the Frenchman over the last 12 months, according to FBref.

The positional peers have shared many similarities in their output over the season so far, including shots on target rate (19% v 19%), goal contributions (4 v 5), pass completion rate (87.3% v 86.9%), goal-creating actions (5 v 6), progressive passes completed (108 v 107) and successful take-ons (10 v 9).

As a result, if the Villa manager could continue to develop Guendouzi’s talents, the club would secure a player who could be incredibly influential in the team for years to come amid their ambitious efforts to qualify for European football, similar to the impact that Modric has had at Real Madrid.

With that in mind, a move for Guendouzi is an opportunity not to be missed by the powerbrokers at Villa Park, as the talented midfielder could be the catalyst in massively improving the link-up play to inspire more opportunities in front of goal.