Last year's January transfer window represented the first chance for Aston Villa manager Unai Emery to put his stamp on the squad through recruitment. Emery had only been appointed at the end of October, so he'd been denied the luxury of the full summer market.
Villa freed up the funds for a couple of major winter signings, acquiring full-back Alex Moreno from Real Betis for £11.6m, and forward Jhon Duran from Chicago Fire for £14.3m (Transfermarkt). They had gone into the window in the bottom half of the Premier League table, but would end up finishing seventh.
A year on, and Emery's side sit just three points behind leaders Liverpool at the 20-game mark, raising the genuine prospect of Champions League football or even a title charge. With the right business in January, Villa can give themselves the best possible chance of protecting or improving their spot for the remainder of the season, but Emery has now suffered an early blow.
Ngonge set to snub Villa
A report from Italy earlier this week claimed Villa had agreed a fee of €10m for Hellas Verona winger Cyril Ngonge (TuttoMercatoWeb), and L'Arena backs up that story while noting that the Villans also offered €2m in add-ons (Sport Witness).
All confirmed Premier League done deals: January transfer window 2024
With the January transfer window coming towards its conclusion, FFC has all the info for tracking your club’s winter transfer activity.
ByLuke RandallFeb 1, 2024
However, Ngonge is showing little interest in the idea of moving to Villa Park, and would instead prefer to remain in Serie A if he is to leave Verona. Domestic suitor Fiorentina may therefore represent a more compelling option.
A 23-year-old right-sided attacker, Ngonge came through the youth ranks at Club Brugge in his native Belgium and joined Verona from Groningen just last summer after spells with PSV and RKC Waalwijk. In his first season of Serie A football, he's scored five goals and provided two assists, which has helped keep his side outside the relegation zone on goal difference alone (Transfermarkt).
Bailey transformation under Emery softens blow
It's somewhat surprising that Ngonge isn't particularly keen on this move. He has the opportunity to trade a relegation battle for a Champions League race, and it doesn't seem like a sense of loyalty is at play given his apparent willingness to join Fiorentina.
Either way, the big consolation for Emery is the form of one of his existing options in Leon Bailey. The Jamaican is already closing in on a 'double double' with nine goals and eight assists in all competitions this season. In both departments, he's already enjoying the best year of his Villa career, and there's still just under 50% of the season to go (Transfermarkt).
Bailey has been in especially strong form recently too, scoring three, including a winner against reigning champions Manchester City in December, and setting up two more in his last seven Premier League matches.
With Nicolo Zaniolo, Moussa Diaby and, as part of a tactical reshuffle, Matty Cash all capable of playing on the right wing if needed, Emery should be fine until the end of the season. The Athletic have reported that Emery would also like to sign a right-back, so perhaps that should be the bigger priority for the winter market.