Emile Smith Rowe: Who can Aston Villa target if they miss out on Arsenal midfielder?

Dwight McNeil (21) – Burnley

The first entry in this includes a player who has already garnered attention from a host of teams, Aston Villa included.

While the interest in him has also been confirmed in The Athletic mailbag, his blend of youth, positional need and technical ability and wealth of Premier League experience (8000+ minutes over 3 seasons) makes him a desirable asset across the league and an asset Burnley would ask a pretty penny for.

McNeil holds a solid xA (xG which follows a pass that assists a shot) of 6.5, which although it is 2.1 lower than Grealish, bodes well for a player like him who is commonly regarded as more of a natural winger who operates primarily near the byline.

His ability to play as a LW also opens up another season of Jack Grealish facilitating and occupying the central attacking role and added depth in wing positions with Traore and El Ghazi already there.

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There is also an off chance that Dean Smith does opt to begin phasing in Jacob Ramsey, a player who registered 600 minutes of top-flight game time, more regularly and a definitive debut for Aston Villa academy starlet Carney Chukwuemeka is on the horizon.

These two players would realistically serve as a project that is being blooded merely towards the end of games and early cup ties but most of the players from the Youth Cup winning side will undoubtedly gain loan spells away from the club before their future is aligned with the first team.

Dwight McNeil also looks like a player who is willing to do the dirty work in that his defensive actions could bear well for the team. Sean Dyche has enjoyed his pressures (No. of times applying pressure to receiving opposing player) when out of possession in the defensive third and middle third with 4.50 and 8.18 per 90, respectively.

This slots him comfortably in the 79th and 73rd percentile. On the other hand, McNeil is borderline elite when it comes to deliveries into the box with his crosses into the penalty area ranking him in the top 3% in his position with 0.80 per 90.

There are many facets of his game that would appeal to Dean Smith and Aston Villa recruitment and an inquiry into his price might nudge them towards a different direction.