An update has emerged on Aston Villa and their interest in adding to their squad before the deadline for the January transfer window...

What's the talk?

The Athletic's Liam Twomey has revealed that the Villans are one of the clubs interested in a deal to snap up Chelsea central midfielder Conor Gallagher, who is not set to join Premier League rivals Everton, in the coming hours as Johan Lange attempts to improve the team.

He Tweeted: "Whatever happens with Enzo Fernandez, I wouldn’t expect Conor Gallagher to end up at Everton. He’s expected to have better PL options - Newcastle, Crystal Palace, West Ham and Aston Villa among them."

This comes after it was reported that the Toffees had submitted an offer to Graham Potter's side in an attempt to add the England international to Sean Dyche's squad.

Forget about Matteo Guendouzi

Earlier this month, it was reported that Villa are keen on a deal to sign Marseille midfielder Matteo Guendouzi for a fee in the region of £30m to bolster Unai Emery's options in the middle of the park.

Lange and Emery must now forget about the French international as Gallagher could be a better option for the club in the midfield position before the deadline.

In two seasons in the Premier League for Arsenal, Guendouzi did not average a Sofascore rating higher than 6.84 and only contributed with one goal and one assist. Although, the gem did produce four goals and six assists in 38 Ligue 1 outings for Marseille, averaging a Sofascore rating of 7.00, last term.

Whereas, Gallagher has proven himself in the English top-flight after enjoying a stellar campaign on loan at Crystal Palace in the 2021/22 season.

The £50k-per-week England international averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.08 across 34 appearances in the division whilst contributing with an eye-catching eight goals and three assists from midfield.

Ex-Sheffield United midfielder Mark Duffy once hailed the gem a "pressing machine" and his 2.9 tackles and interceptions per match for Palace show that the midfielder is willing to put his foot in on a regular basis, which indicates that he is not a defensive liability. 

Therefore, the Englishman offers quality at both ends of the pitch and has proven that he can deliver consistently impressive performances in the Premier League, which is why the dynamo would be a better option than Guendouzi - who did not prove himself during his time at The Emirates.