Aston Villa boss Unai Emery is now seriously considering adding another high-profile player to his ranks in January to bolster his side's chances of continental qualification, according to a report.
Aston Villa latest news…
Villa extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to six matches on the bounce on Sunday by convincingly disposing of Luton Town 3-1 at Villa Park, courtesy of strikes from John McGinn, Moussa Diaby and an own goal from Tom Lockyer. The Villans occupy fifth position in the Premier League standings, having taken 22 points from their first ten encounters in the English top-flight, sitting four points behind leaders Tottenham Hotspur.
In the aftermath of the fixture, Emery was asked about whether the Villans can mount a challenge for the top four, to which he responded: "We are going to play Newcastle and Liverpool at home and maybe we can change the matches we play. When we lost against Newcastle and Liverpool, I told the players, ‘I want to reduce the distance they showed to us when we play them at home."
"Those matches will show if it is possible or not (to finish in the top four). We have to face each match playing three points against each team."
Next up for Aston Villa is an away clash against Nottingham Forest on Sunday, in a fixture which could provide a platform for Aston Villa to move into Champions League contention at the City Ground. With added pressure comes extra expectation to perform. However, Aston Villa's rapid rise to prominence under Emery will also be considered an attractive proposition for potential arrivals to immerse themselves in. That said, Aston Villa owners NSWE are now reportedly in the hunt to bring in a talented midfielder to bolster their squad in January, according to a fresh report.
Aston Villa's next five fixtures – all competitions
Competition
Opponent
Venue
Premier League
Nottingham Forest (A)
City Ground
Europa Conference League
AZ Alkmaar (H)
Villa Park
Premier League
Fulham (H)
Villa Park
Premier League
Tottenham Hotspur (A)
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Europa Conference League
Legia Warsaw (H)
Villa Park
Aston Villa keen on Exequiel Palacios
According to a transfer update from TNT Sports, Aston Villa are keen to sign Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Exequiel Palacios, who are yet to lose a single game he has featured in this campaign in all competitions for the Bundesliga outfit and sit top of the table.
Exequiel Palacios stats 2023/24 – all competitions
Appearances
12
Goals
2
Assists
1
Wins featured in
11
Draws featured in
1
Losses
0
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt
The report states that the Villans could face stiff competition to sign the Argentina international, who is also being tracked by Manchester City and Newcastle United.
Palacios, who has been dubbed "exceptional" by Bayer Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes, has also averaged around 2.2 successful tackles and two interceptions per match this term in the German top-flight (Palacios statistics – WhoScored). Aston Villa already have an abundance of exciting midfield talent; nevertheless, one more quality addition in the engine room won't hurt as Emery seeks to compete on both domestic and European fronts.