da aviator aposta： Aston Villa manager Unai Emery is set to enter his first summer transfer window in charge of the club and it provides him with a chance to make big changes to his squad.
da jogodeouro： The Spaniard helped the club to secure European football for next season by earning qualification for the Europa Conference League and the roster may need upgrading in order to deal with playing in multiple competitions.
Portuguese outlet A Bola recently reported that the Villans are interested in a deal to sign Sporting attacking midfielder Pedro Goncalves ahead of the 2023/24 campaign and he could improve Emery's team significantly.
The report claimed that the club have been tracking the ace since 2020 and have contacted the Liga Portugal side to enquire about his price, with his side demanding that potential suitors pay up his release clause of €80m (£69m).
How did Pedro Goncalves perform this season?
Emery could land a big upgrade on current Villa playmaker Emiliano Buendia by signing Goncalves as the 24-year-old star enjoyed an exceptional campaign with Sporting in his home country.
In the Portuguese top flight, the magician averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.51 across 33 matches and contributed with 15 goals and 11 assists.
The dynamo proved himself to be a reliable goalscorer from an attacking midfield or wide position, after scoring eight goals in 27 league outings last term, and could provide a greater goal threat than Buendia, who managed just five strikes in 38 matches in the Premier League in 22/23 and four in 35 games in 21/22 for the Villans.
Goncalves, whose form was once hailed as "incredible" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, also created 16 'big chances' and provided 2.6 key passes per match for Sporting in the league. This shows that the former Wolves maestro is consistently opening up the opposition's defence to create quality opportunities for his teammates, to go along with his own goalscoring ability.
Buendia, meanwhile, created eight 'big chances' and made 1.4 key passes per game for Villa in the league and these statistics indicate that the Argentine does not offer as much as the Portuguese talent when it comes to creating for others.
Therefore, Emery could improve his squad heading into the 2023/24 campaign by swooping for Goncalves in the coming months as the playmaker has the potential to provide far more quality in the final third than the ex-Norwich man.
There is no guarantee that he will be able to translate his form from Portugal over to England but his eye-catching form in front of goal suggests that it is a gamble worth taking this summer.