When Aston Villa sold Jack Grealish to Manchester City in a record £100m package back in August 2021, Villans feared that their enjoyable purple patch would pale back into obscurity, like an etiolated plant failing to find sunlight.
But that was not the case. The England star might have won hordes of trophies and been praised for his "incredible contribution" by manager Pep Guardiola, but Villa Park has also gone from strength to strength and now waits for the 2024/25 campaign and the advent of Champions League football.
It's a product of Unai Emery's masterclass. The Spanish tactician's shrewd player management and sharp on-pitch assembling has seen Villa clinch fourth place in the Premier League. Some might call it a miracle but the reality is that Emery's worth his salt and carefully crafted a formidable outfit.
Chelsea (A)
24/09/23
0-1
Brighton (H)
30/09/23
6-1
Man City (H)
06/12/23
1-0
Arsenal (H)
09/12/23
1-0
Arsenal (A)
14/04/24
2-0
Grealish's one-time sale might linger with poignancy in some cloistered area of a Lions supporter's mind but the feats of the present have dispelled any malaise and charted a course to heights unseen in generations. Now, Emery wants to bolster his pack and ensure that further success is on the cards.
Aston Villa eyeing Premier League star
According to reporter Ben Jacobs – speaking to GiveMeSport – this week, Villa have expressed interest in signing Emile Smith Rowe this summer, with the Arsenal star afflicted by injuries over the past two years and falling down Mikel Arteta's pecking order.
Villa offered £30m for Smith Rowe back in 2021, after Grealish's sale, but given that the 23-year-old has completed just four starts across the past two seasons, it might be time for him to revive his career away from the Emirates.
Last year, Arsenal were adamant that Smith Rowe would cost £60m to transfer away from the club – using Manchester United's £55m move for Mason Mount as a yardstick – but whether any suitor would part with such a lofty outlay is now questionable.
Emile Smith Rowe's season in numbers
During the 2022/23 campaign, Smith Rowe underwent groin surgery after just two months, which ravaged his season and left him scraping for substitute appearances, featuring 15 times in all competitions and placing two assists but failing to register a single start.
The three-cap England international, let's not forget, was previously touted as one of the finest youngsters in the Premier League, with pundit Jamie Carragher even proclaiming him to be the "best player in the Premier League running with the ball" in the early days of the 2021/22 term, continuing to name him a "special talent".
But his personal woes were carried into the recently-concluded campaign, with his lacklustre match action inversely proportional to the superabundance of quality that could be reignited at Aston Villa, under Emery's guidance.
He enjoyed slightly more promise throughout, starting four times in all competitions but still spending far too much time on the fringe, also sidelined with a knee injury during the later months of 2023.
Brentford (A)
27/09/23
1-0 win
n/a
7/10
Sheffield United (H)
28/10/23
5-0 win
1 assist
6/10
Nottingham Forest (A)
30/01/24
2-1 win
n/a
7/10
Luton Town (H)
03/04/24
2-0 win
1 assist
8/10
But his meagre opportunity on the pitch showcased a skill set that would be perfect for a team like Villa, where he could find a promising place in the squad.
Why Smith Rowe would be perfect at Aston Villa
Smith Rowe, to further the argument, scored three goals from nine appearances under Emery at Arsenal while in the early stage of his career, and now the 52-year-old – who lauded Smith Rowe's "quality" as a teenager – has a vested interest in restoring the bond, in bringing him to a new home with pledges of prominence and prosperity.
Optical assessment reveals that recent issues do not nullify a wonderful ability with a football that simply needs some new life, some confidence and belief that, yes, he can thrive at the highest level.
Let's not forget, the £40k-per-week talent has proven himself across the duration of a Premier League campaign, scoring ten goals and adding two assists during 2021/22 (Sofascore), his last taste of sustained success, despite earning only 21 starts, also completing 87% of his passes and 60% of his dribbles.
Affectionately nicknamed 'the Croydon De Bruyne' by those close to him, Smith Rowe certainly offers qualities that could make him one of the Premier League's leading playmakers in the future, with real stylistic similarities to Manchester City's creative talisman.
Kevin De Bruyne is 33 this month but remains one of the most influential and immense players in Europe, scoring six goals and supplying a staggering 18 assists from 26 matches in all competitions, hailed as an "all-time great" by Carragher.
The Sky Sports pundit clearly knows a top-class player when he sees one and given that he has sung Smith Rowe's praises, whose ball-playing expertise and silkiness when shifting through the gears bears the hallmark of a high-level star, there's a real chance that, at Villa, he could kickstart his career triumphantly.
Arsenal have risen to an elite position on the European stage. A by-product of this is the talented peripheral players that get left behind, ousted for the greater good of the machine. Smith Rowe's issues over the past few years leave him in an almost untenable position, with Kai Havertz, Martin Odegaard, Fabio Vieira and Leandro Trossard all capable of performing in his favoured central or left-tilted attacking midfield roles.
He's also out of contract in 2026, and so if Arsenal wish to receive bang for their buck it might be wise to cash in swiftly for maximum value: he's not going to renew, lest he spend a career performing below his potential.
Villa can bring him back to the fore; Emery can make him a major player in a squad that now perches among Europe's elite.
Smith Rowe, for his part, has so much talent and would be a real creative asset to one of the Premier League's most exciting projects.
Aston Villa set to prioritise signing £2k-p/w gem Emery is a massive fan of
The planning for present and future is underway at Villa Park.
ByBen BrowningMay 31, 2024