An update has emerged on Aston Villa and their pursuit of Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix ahead of the January transfer window...

What's the talk?

CBSS journalist Ben Jacobs has claimed that the Villans, alongside a host of other Premier League sides, have been given the opportunity to snap the Portuguese international up on loan until the end of the season.

He tweeted: "Challenge for all João Félix suitors is he's being offered on straight loan with no option to buy. That means an outlay of £8m (fee) and £5.3m (net salary). Felix offered to #AFC, #CFC, #MUFC, #NUFC and Villa. But a 'give' is needed by Atleti to make a loan more appealing."

The reporter added: "Jorge Mendes is taking a pretty similar approach to Ronaldo by pitching Felix to several clubs. Premier League is thought to be his most likely destination currently. But he's been mentioned to Juventus, Milan and PSG, too."

It remains to be seen, however, whether or not Villa would be willing to sign the attacker without the chance to make it a permanent move in the summer.

Start of the Emery era

The signing of Felix would truly ignite the Unai Emery era at Villa Park by becoming the Spaniard's first signing for the club and making an instant impact on the pitch.

Villa are currently 12th in the Premier League table and seven points off the top six as it stands. This means that they will need an upturn in form during the second half of the campaign in order to push up the division and compete for a place in Europe for the next season.

Bringing in a player of Felix's calibre could help them to move up the table as he is a supremely talented attacking gem whose ability on the ball could improve Emery's team and take the side to the next level.

The 23-year-old, who teammate Yannick Carrasco dubbed “immense”, caught the eye at the World Cup with one goal and two assists in four appearances for Portugal and he has shown plenty of promise at Atletico in La Liga.

Felix has produced 11 goals and seven assists in 18 starts in the Spanish top-flight since the start of last season - averaging a Sofascore rating of 7.15 in the division last term.

Meanwhile, no Villa player has averaged a score higher than 6.91 or provided more than six direct goal contributions in the Premier League in 2022/23.

Therefore, the Atletico magician, who has 102 combined goals and assists in his club career, could kickstart the Emery era by stepping in as the best player at the club - based on his average performance level and contributions in the final third - and taking them up the table.

It may only be a loan until the end of the season but he could be the trailblazer for other stars to follow suit and join Villa next summer, particularly if he is able to lead the Villans to European football.