Aston Villa have made contact regarding a potential summer deal to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Hwang Hee-Chan, according to reports.

Who is Hwang Hee-Chan?

Hwang is a South Korean international who permanently arrived in the Premier League from RB Leipzig last summer following a successful loan period at Molineux the season before, as per Transfermarkt, where he’s since clocked up 63 appearances across both spells to date.

The Old Gold forward still has another three years remaining on his contract, but having established himself as Julen Lopetegui’s third best-performing offensive player this campaign, has caught the eye of Unai Emery.

The Midlands outfit comfortably secured their safety in the top-flight weeks ago now, but as a result of experiencing issues with Financial Fair Play, they could be forced to cash in on some of their most prized assets to help balance the books during the upcoming window, the 27-year-old being one of them, which has alerted the manager to his potential availability.

Who is signing Hwang?

According to The Mirror, Aston Vila have “registered an interest” in landing Hwang alongside AS Roma, with Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United also “monitoring” his situation in the Premier League. Wolves are “under pressure” to decrease the size of their squad in the weeks and months ahead with it being stated that some players “will have to be sold”.

Lopetegui is “loathe to lose” the striker, but he wants all of his transfer business to be completed “as quickly as possible”, so NSWE will therefore have to “show their hands” soon should they want to reach an agreement.

Would Hwang be a good signing for Villa?

Aston Villa will know that Hwang only made 12 Premier League starts in 2022/23 due to sustaining a hamstring injury earlier in the term, but he’s still shown what a “dangerous” poacher he can be when fit, as hailed by Sky Sports pundit Kevin Campbell, so he has the potential to be a great addition for Emery.

The World Cup participant, who currently pockets £30k-per-week, posted seven goal contributions (four goals and three assists) across all competitions this season, but he’s also capable of getting stuck in defensively, ranking in the 99th percentile for most tackles and blocks.

Finally, Hwang would add wonderful versatility to the Spaniard’s squad with his ability to operate in five different positions over the grass, including out wide on both flanks and even deeper in the midfield alongside his natural centre-forward role, and he would only develop even further under the guidance of Emery at Villa Park.