According to Spanish outlet Sport, the 24-year-old ace is valued at €20 million (£17 million) and might leave the club in January, with Los Blancos reportedly “happy” to sell him.
Nicolo Zaniolo has made a disastrous to life at Aston Villa and several targets have been linked to replace him.
Aston Villa have made a flying start to the 2023/24 Premier League campaign as Unai Emery continues to mastermind a charge towards the Champions League spots.
Having been entrusted into the managerial hot seat just over a year ago, no one could have envisaged the Spaniard taking Villa from the threat of relegation to battling it out in the Europa Conference League.
This remarkable turnaround is a testament to the tactical ingenuity and the superb squad that Emery has crafted, bringing in the likes of Pau Torres and Moussa Diaby in the summer, while reports suggest the former Arsenal boss has unfinished business in the transfer market.
Latest Aston Villa transfer news
With the January window approaching, Villa have been linked with a whole host of stars who could bolster their options in the final third.
One of those names is Real Madrid talent Brahim Diaz. The 24-year-old ace, who is said to be valued at €20m (£17m), could depart the club in January according to Spanish outlet Sport, with Los Blancos apparently “happy” to sell him.
Another potential acquisition in the winter window is former Wolves forward Pedro Goncalves, who has enjoyed a prolific spell at Sporting Lisbon, with the 25-year-old notching up 97 goal contributions in 141 appearances for the club.
That impressive form has drawn a whole host of attention towards him and according to the Record, via Sport Witness, Villa are keen on signing the winger, who has a release clause of €80m (£69.8m) release clause in his contract.
In other news, Goncalves is not the only scintillating winger being linked with a move to Villa Park as Galatasaray left winger Kerem Akturkoglu is a name that continues to do the rounds.
It was reported by TEAMtalk that a whole host of clubs, including Villa, West Ham, and Brighton have checked on the winger in recent weeks as he played for Galatasaray and Turkey.
With a current value of €15m (£13m), as per Football Observatory, Emery may need to act fast in their pursuit of the highly-rated 25-year-old gem as an upgrade on one of their currently underperforming players.
Kerem Akturkoglu could be the perfect Nicolo Zaniolo replacement
Once lauded as a ‘wizard’ by the Turkish press, likening his magical displays to the fictional character Harry Potter, Akturkoglu has been in fine form for his club this season, unlike Villa’s Nicolo Zaniolo.
While the Italian was expected to become the creative spark down the left flank in the long-term absence of Emiliano Buendia, he has had a slow start to life at Villa, and this is an area that the 24-cap Turkey international could thrive in.
The 5 foot 8 magician has been in sensational form for Galatasaray, especially in recent times, posting an incredible 48 goal contributions in the past three Turkish Super Lig campaigns, including three goals and four assists in his first 10 league matches this term.
That scintillating form blows Zaniolo’s exploits out of the water as he is yet to register a goal or an assist for Villa in 11 appearances, and he has never eclipsed double figures for goals in a single campaign at senior level.
What’s more alarming is the fact that the Italy international has not looked like providing that spark for his club in the final third, averaging 0.7 key passes per game and a frail pass completion of 73% in the Premier League this term, suggesting he is yet to find his feet in England.
Compare that to Akturkoglu, who has created a whopping eight ‘big chances’, averaged 3.2 key passes and 2.4 shots per game in ten Turkish Super Lig outings which demonstrates that the fleet-footed winger could provide Emery with expert creativity at the top end of the pitch.
Zaniolo has failed to successfully endear his talents to the Villa faithful and if he continues to put in subpar performances, there would be no harm in exploring the possibility of signing the Turkish magician in January.
He could provide an abundance of creativity in dangerous areas as an upgrade on the Italian, whose loan is due to expire at the end of the season, as shown by their respective statistics, if he can adapt to English football.
