Aston Villa opinion: Should the Lions sign Anwar El Ghazi permanently?

According to French news outlet L’Equipe, Aston Villaare the front runners to sign Lille winger Anwar El Ghazi permanently at the end of the season.

L’Equipeclaims that Lille are desperate to offload the 24-year-old Dutchman in the summer to raise funds for other deals, despite only luring the winger to Ligue 1 from Ajax in January 2017.

El Ghazi has a contract at Lille which runs until 2021 but Villa have a buy-clause included in the loan deal, which would give the Lions an upper hand should he be put up for sale in the summer.

Former Villa manager Steve Bruce was the man responsible for bringing the two-cap Netherlands international to the Midlands club last summer and he has proven himself to be a pretty good signing over the course of the season.

The 24-year-old has been in and out of the first-team at Villa Park in the Championship this season but he has still managed to contribute with 5 goals and 6 assists from 31 appearances.

The Dutch-Moroccan hasn’t quite lived up to the potential that he showed during his earlier days at Ajax but he has played a substantial role in the club’s march to the promotion playoff places.

A youth product of the widely revered Ajax academy, El Ghazi racked up 23 goals and 16 assists for the Dutch giants in all competitions before moving to Ligue 1 to join Lille.

However, his spell in the French top-flight was a mediocre one and he was deemed surplus to the demands after just a single season, although he managed to contribute with 4 goals and 4 assists in the league last term.

Meanwhile, Villa will be heading into the playoffs as the in-form team in the Championship and Dean Smith’s side are one of the hot favourites to make it to the Premier League.

The Lions are currently enjoying the services of Kortney Hause, Tyrone Mings, Tammy Abraham, Axel Tuanzebe and Anwar El Ghazi on loan but the futures of their loanees will depend on whether they manage to make a return to the top-flight.

Abraham will arguably be the most difficult to sign if they stay in the Championship for another year.

Mings and Hause have played a key role since the turn of the year and Villa should look to strike permanent deals for both the versatile defenders irrespective of which division they play their football next season.

Man United loanee Tuanzebe has also done well but Villa would need to do exceptionally well to keep him beyond the season.

The fans at Villa Park might be divided in their opinion when it comes to signing El Ghazi permanently.

He has thrived in the Championship and has added that much-needed cutting edge to the team’s attack with his mazy runs down the wide areas, though it is still uncertain whether he will be able to make a positive impact in the Premier League should Villa go up.

In all honesty, amongst all the loanees at Villa Park this season, El Ghazi should be the easiest to sign permanently at the end of the current campaign given that Lille are ready to get him off their books.

Villa currently do not have enough depth in their options out wide, with youngster Andre Green and veteran Albert Adomah being the only senior players in their ranks who are capable of playing as wingers.

El Ghazi, though not world-class by any means, is more than capable of outsmarting the opposition with his quick feet, acceleration and dribbling skills, while he also has a penchant for scoring crucial goals and contributing with key passes in the final third.

Conclusion

El Ghazi is someone who brings that X-factor into Villa’s attack and the Lions should bank on him to make the step up to the Premier League in the future. He has European experience under his belt and that is something Villa should consider.

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The Dutchman is unlikely to cost Villa a fortune if they really want to sign him up permanently and given that he is still only 24, the Lions would be able to get a good resale value for him in the market should he fail to deliver the goods.