Aston Villa are ready to discuss a summer deal to sign Galatasaray star Nicolo Zaniolo, according to reports.
Where is Nicolo Zaniolo?
Zaniolo was linked with all sorts of clubs before he left AS Roma, but currently plays his football at the Nef Stadium having joined from the Italian capital back in February. He’s since gone on to make 11 appearances for Gala, but his game time has been far from regular.
In the Super Lig last season, the 23-year-old was only handed two starts by Okan Buruk so is significantly out of favour despite being one of his manager’s most recent new signings, meaning that he could be looking to complete a move elsewhere to get more minutes under his belt.
The Italy international has been previously linked with a move to the Premier League after attracting significant interest from Tottenham Hotspur in January, and despite a move failing to come to fruition, it turns out a switch to the top-flight could be on the cards after all.
Are Aston Villa signing Zaniolo?
According to Turkish outlet Takvim (via Sport Witness), who name-check Monchi specifically, Aston Villa are “interested” in signing Zaniolo ahead of the 2023/24 term. The Midlands outfit are one of seven clubs to be “sat at the table” waiting to open talks over a swoop for the midfielder, who has had a €35m (£29m) price tag placed on his head.
Galatasaray “do not consider accepting offers below” the specified fee, though at this stage, the player is “thinking of staying” for one more year due to the fact that his side will be playing in the Champions League.
Aston Villa appointed Monchi as their new President of Football Operations earlier this month and he’s clearly wasting no time in getting to work with Unai Emery by identifying transfer targets.
Zaniolo has been dubbed a “monster” by journalist Nick Mercadante, and it’s no surprise that he’s one of the names under consideration given he seems to be somewhat of a mercurial talent who is yet to find a home where he can reach his true potential.
Sponsored by Nike, the attacking midfielder has posted six goal contributions (five goals and one assist) in 11 Galatasaray outings whilst averaging 2.2 shots per league game since joining, showing how much of a prolific impact he can make even on limited opportunities.
Now a Super Lig champion, Zaniolo would also provide the manager with wonderful versatility having operated in six various positions across the pitch since first bursting onto the scene, including everywhere across the frontline, so should the opportunity present itself for a reasonable price, this really is a no-brainer of a deal to complete.
