Aston Villa may have missed a chance to disrupt the top of the Premier League after a quiet 2024 winter transfer window.
Unai Emery’s side’s recent wobble in form has created concern at Villa Park.
Journalist Dean Jones suggests the Villans could have been more ambitious in the transfer market but understands their cautious approach.
Aston Villa may rue the opportunity to disrupt the top of the Premier League following a quiet 2024 winter transfer window at Villa Park, but journalist Dean Jones claims the club don’t regret their business in January.
The Villans have enjoyed a fantastic 2023/24 campaign under Unai Emery and are in the race to secure Champions League football next term, sitting in the Premier League’s top five.
Villa also have to consider their return to the Europa Conference League knockout stages in March, when they will turn their attentions to winning a continental trophy for the first time since 1982. However, the West Midlands giants failed to take advantage of their position during the winter market and have seen a recent wobble in form that has created concern around Villa Park.
Like the rest of the Premier League, Villa didn’t make a splash during the 2024 winter transfer window, although they were more active than most. The Premier League’s rules on profit and sustainability have meant that several clubs have had to rein in their spending to remain compliant.
Villa opened their business by acquiring the signature of Red Star Belgrade right-back Kostas Nedeljkovic. The 18-year-old signed on the dotted line at Villa Park before returning to his former club on loan until the end of the 2023/24 season.
Emery would later bolster his goalkeeping ranks, with Adelaide United stopper Joe Gauci arriving in the second city, likely to provide cover for Emiliano Martinez. Arsenal U21 left-back Lino Sousa’s signature was captured before swiftly being loaned to Championship outfit Plymouth Argyle until the end of the campaign.
But Villa’s central piece of business was to welcome Middlesbrough forward Morgan Rogers to Villa Park in a deal that could rise to £16m. The 21-year-old had already registered 16 goal contributions in all competitions for Boro this term.
Emery had seen Rogers first-hand in Villa’s 1-0 victory at the Riverside Stadium in the FA Cup Third Round in January and was impressed enough to make a play for his signature. However, Rogers’ signing would be the only first-team piece of business Villa would complete this winter. Pundit Stephen Warnock has admitted that he was surprised at the Villans’ quiet transfer window after the club’s recent home defeats at the hands of Newcastle United, Chelsea and Manchester United.
Jones has suggested that Villa stuck to what has been tried and tested at Villa Park in the 2024 winter transfer window. However, the journalist has admitted they could have been “a little bit more ambitious” at Villa Park. Jones told GIVEMESPORT:
“I don’t know that Villa regret their lack of business in the winter transfer window. I think they, like everyone else, were cautious during the January market. I felt they might push the boat out because they had almost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to mess up the order at the top of the Premier League. It’s not very often you get to be a disrupter anymore, but Villa were well-placed to do that. But I can also understand why you would stick to what’s tried and tested in terms of getting you to that point in the season and understanding the philosophy. So, maybe they should have been a little bit more ambitious, but it was a difficult window to work in.”
Villa’s 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Manchester United on 11th February means that Emery’s side have slipped out of the Premier League’s top four. A fifth-placed finish could be enough to secure Champions League football at Villa Park during the 2024/25 season, but the one-time European Cup winners hope to ensure their place by finishing in the top four.
Looking ahead to the 2024 summer transfer window, Jones has recently told GIVEMESPORT (11th February) that Villa will hold ‘further conversations’ over whether to cash in on academy product Jacob Ramsey. The 22-year-old could be sold for more than £50m as Villa consider a deal amid concerns over the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.
Ramsey has struggled with injuries throughout the 2023/24 campaign. Still, he could find himself back in Emery’s starting lineup after Boubacar Kamara suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury in the defeat against Manchester United.
Villa return to Premier League action when they travel to Fulham on 17th February. Emery’s side conclude the month when they host Nottingham Forest on the 24th, aiming to avenge their 2-0 defeat at The City Ground earlier in the campaign.
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