Aston Villa manager Unai Emery did not make wholesale changes to his squad during his first transfer window in charge of the club in January.
The Spaniard brought in teenager Jhon Duran, from Chicago Fire, and experienced left-back Alex Moreno, from Real Betis, on permanent deals and allowed centre-forward Danny Ings to join Premier League rivals West Ham United.
Emery may, however, look to do more business in the summer transfer window with a view to attacking the 2023/24 campaign head-on as the coach will have the opportunity to have a full pre-season with his team.
One player who could come through the door at Villa Park is Barcelona ace Franck Kessie as NSWE eye a swoop to sign the ex-AC Milan enforcer.
Are Aston Villa interested in signing Franck Kessie?
According to recent reports in Spain, the Villans are one of the clubs who are ready to make a bid to sign the central midfielder in the summer if he becomes available.
Fellow Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur and Serie A giants Inter are also said to be eyeing up the Ivorian, who was once dubbed “a tank of a player” by journalist David Amoyal.
Antonio Cassano also hailed Kessie as “devastating” and that word aptly describes the midfield that Emery could form by signing the gem to partner Boubacar Kamara next season.
The current Villa midfielder has been a solid performer for the club in the top flight since joining from Marseille last summer. He has made 3.4 tackles and interceptions per match – winning 55% of his duels – across 18 appearances in the division.
Kamara has proven himself to be a strong defensive force in the middle of the pitch by consistently cutting out opposition attacks to win possession back for his side.
Kessie could come in and complement the 23-year-old’s work in midfield by offering quality in possession. The £153k-per-week Ivorian has struggled for game time, starting four matches in LaLiga this term, but caught the eye with his impressive displays for Milan in the Serie A last season.
In 31 appearances in the Italian top-flight, the 26-year-old averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.07 and contributed with six goals and 0.9 key passes per game. The gem only made two tackles and interceptions per game but did win 55% of his battles, which shows that he was fairly effective when competing for the ball.
Kamara is yet to score for Villa and has averaged 0.4 key passes per match but Kessie, who scored 19 Serie A goals in his last two seasons with Milan, could be the attacking presence in midfield to allow the Frenchman to go about his excellent defensive work.
Therefore, they could be a devastating duo for Emery as their contrasting styles and qualities in the middle of the park could blend together to make a balanced midfield that makes an impact at both ends of the pitch.