Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery has been backed during the summer transfer window so far as the club have brought in four new signings to bolster his squad.
Who have Aston Villa signed this summer?
The first arrival of the off-season was central midfielder Youri Tielemans on a free transfer from Leicester City, who were relegated from the Premier League earlier this year.
The Villans then brought in Moussa Diaby and Pau Torres from Bayer Leverkusen and Villarreal respectively on permanent deals.
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Their fourth addition of the window came this week as the club confirmed the signing of Italian attacking midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo on loan from Galatasaray.
That may not be the end of their business, however, and one player who could be an excellent signing for Emery is reported transfer target Giovani Lo Celso.
How good is Giovani Lo Celso?
The 27-year-old dynamo is an excellent number eight who could come in as the next John McGinn for Emery if the Spanish tactician is able to secure a deal for his services.
They worked together at Villarreal during the 2021/22 and 2022/23 campaigns whilst the Argentina international was on loan from Tottenham Hotspur and his performances last term suggest that he has the potential to be a superb player for Villa.
Lo Celso, like McGinn, is a left-footed midfielder who is able to make an impact in and out of possession. Last season, he averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.10 across 22 LaLiga outings and showcased his ability offensively and defensively.
The then-Villarreal gem scored two goals and created six 'big chances' for his teammates, whilst he also averaged 1.4 key passes per game – which was 0.2 more than any Villa player managed in the Premier League.
McGinn, meanwhile, averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.99 over 34 top-flight outings for the Villans and contributed with one goal and six 'big chances' created, although he only produced 0.6 key passes per match.
No Villa player averaged a Sofascore rating higher than 7.10 and these statistics suggest that Lo Celso has the potential to be an outstanding option in the middle of the park for Emery in terms of what he offers on the ball.
Out of possession, the 5 foot 10 talent won 57% of his individual duels and was only dribbled past 0.4 times per game for Villarreal last season. Whereas, McGinn came out on top in 57% of his battles and was dribbled past 1.1 times per outing, as per Sofascore.
This indicates that Lo Celso, who was once described as an "amazing" player by former boss Jose Mourinho, could offer a similar level of strength to the Scotland international whilst not allowing opposition players to bypass him as frequently.
Overall, their respective statistics suggest that they would both be superb options for Emery to call upon in midfield and they could provide each other with exceptional competition for a place in the side.
This could create an environment that encourages both of them to push harder and harder in training and matches in order to win the fight for a starting spot, whilst the depth that it would provide could be vital as Villa look to compete across multiple competitions if they qualify for the group stages of the Europa Conference League.