aston villa The January transfer window has been quite busy as they try to increase their chances of qualifying for the Champions League this season.

Unai EmeryTeam reportedly looking for ambitious trade Barcelona forward Ferran Torres and Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Matatabut couldn’t get either to move across the line.

Mateta almost signed with AC Milan rather than move to Villa Park, but a knee problem revealed during his medical meant he ended up staying at Selhurst Park.

Villa have decided to bring in Besiktas center Tammy Abraham, bringing the England international back to the club.

The former Chelsea striker spent the 2018/19 season on loan at Villa Park in the Championship, where he rose through the ranks under Dean Smith, and he will now be given the chance to play Premier League Villa football.

Evaluating Aston Villa’s January signings

In addition to signing Abraham, Villa also brought Douglas Luiz back to the club on loan from Italian giants Juventus and signed Brazilian youngster Alisson from Gremio on a permanent contract.

Like the England striker, Luiz is a shrewd signing for Villa as he has previously played for the club and has made 206 appearances in all competitions, scoring 22 goals and providing 24 assists.

It is therefore difficult to rate the signings of Luiz and Abraham at eight out of ten as they are both Premier League stars who know what it takes to play for Villa and can hit the ground running.

Villa, on the other hand, brought Leon Bailey back on loan from Roma last month, which doesn’t look like a good thing. The Jamaica international has scored two goals in 52 appearances for Villa and Roma since the start of last season, but failed to score in his first three games back at the club.

Unless Pele can return to the level of 2023/24, when he scored 14 goals and provided 13 assists, the left-footed miss does not look like he will contribute much at the top of the pitch.

As things stand, Villa should finally part ways with the Jamaican winger when the summer transfer window opens due to his poor performances in the final third over the past 18 months.

Aston Villa could tap their new Morgan Rodgers

Of the four players who moved to Villa in the winter window, Alisson may have been overlooked after the arrivals of Luiz and Abraham.

However, we rate this signing a seven-and-a-half out of ten as he appears to be a very exciting prospect who could end up being Villa’s next Morgan Rodgers.

Villa signed the young English attacking midfielder from Middlesbrough in early 2024 and he continued to score and assist in his first full season at the club, scoring 14 goals and providing 13 assists in the 2024/25 season.

Alisson could follow in Rodgers’ footsteps and settle into life at Villa in the first five months after signing in the January transfer window before emerging as a star in his first full season.

The 19-year-old starlet is yet to make his debut for Villa since signing from Gremio last month, but journalist Jacob Tanswell points out that his team-mates was “moved” Through his “speed and power” in training.

Alisson, who turns 20 in May this year, has made 41 appearances for Gremio in all competitions for the first team after excelling in the youth training, which means that he already has the experience of the adult team and may be ready to step into the Premier League in the next few weeks.

Teenage Ace – In his words, he’s an “exciting prospect” Journalist John Townley – Before breaking into the first team, he made 23 appearances for the Brazilian U23 level, contributing 7 goals and 5 assists, which shows that he does have the potential to score and assist on a regular basis like Rodgers.

Alisson made 41 appearances for Gremio’s first team, scoring only one goal and providing two assists. This is not surprising on paper, but it is worth remembering that the season Villa signed Rodgers, he only scored two goals in 26 English Championship games.

The club looks for traits and potential in young players, not just their performance at the time, and they have clearly found gold in the Middlesbrough star.

Now it is up to Emery to provide Alisson, who mainly plays on the wing, with a chance in the Premier League first team to see if he can become their next Rodgers.

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