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

Lorenzo Pellegrini (25) – Roma

Back to the sensible options and Pellegrini would possibly be the pinnacle of that for Smith’s Villains.

A player who doesn’t shy away from his defensive duties and whose offensive creativity is the spark that the West Midlands side desperately need in adding to/replacing the output of Jack Grealish last season.

The Roma captain serves as more of a direct attacking midfielder option but his versatility throughout the middle of the pitch offers a level of intrigue that could be of value to Villa.

With one year left of his current deal, a figure of £25-30M has been heavily rumoured to tempt the club to sell and clubs like Arsenal will undoubtedly have the 25-year-old in their vision should they talk themselves into depth in that position with Odegaard returning to Madrid. His defensive capabilities are of high regard and should not be understated.

Possessing a strong ability to disrupt the opposing team in pressing forward, he would be a treat to coach as Jose Mourinho and it would be interesting to see if his arrival would trigger some sort of contract extension talks. His expected assists mark up at 0.27 per 90 which puts him in the top 2% of midfielders.