The Athletic's Gregg Evans has dropped a major Aston Villa transfer update that will surely have fans buzzing.

What's the story?

Dean Smith's side have already enjoyed a fruitful start to the summer transfer window, with the signings of both Emi Buendia and Ashley Young being completed early on.

Evans has now revealed that the club are continuing to focus on signing a new playmaker in that attacking midfield role, with Arsenal starlet Emile Smith Rowe remaining their number one target for that position.

He told The Athletic: "Aston Villa’s transfer priority remains a No 10, so, for the first summer in seven years, they are not pushing hard to sign a new striker.

"The collective feeling at Villa is that should another attacking midfielder arrive — and Arsenal’s Emile Smith Rowe is their top target in that department — there will be no immediate need to bolster the forward line further.

"Emi Buendia is already on board, so Villa have strengthened their attacking options this summer even if nothing else happens. They see their ideal starting forward four consisting of Watkins, Buendia, Jack Grealish and another new signing, with Smith Rowe being the pick of the bunch when it comes to desired further additions.

"Of course, there’s considerable work to be done to winkle the 20-year-old out of Arsenal, who are in the process of offering him a new contract and have no appetite to accept any future bid after rejecting Villa’s second offer of around £30m."

Exciting times for Villa

Make no mistake about it, the thought of Ollie Watkins, Jack Grealish, Buendia and Smith Rowe all playing in tandem up front is a mouth-watering one for Villa fans.

That quartet has pace and creativity flowing through it in abundance and will surely add a lot more attacking threat than Villa carried last season - Smith's side scored 55 goals in the Premier League, which ranked them tenth in the division.

With the back five essentially sorted with Emi Martinez in goal, and the likes of Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings and Matt Targett in front of him, it's adding a bit of flair and skill at the top end of the pitch which could greatly determine where Villa will finish next season.

After coming into the Arsenal side post-Christmas, Smith Rowe chipped in with two goals and four assists in just 20 Premier League games, including scoring the winner against Chelsea towards the end of the season.

It's exactly why Evans' update that signing a new number ten is Villa's main priority this summer must have fans absolutely buzzing.

Meanwhile, Villa are closing in on this big-money signing...