Aston Villa are plotting a move for Hellas Verona left-back Josh Doig to rival Lucas Digne in the left-back position.
After a slow start to the transfer window, Aston Villa are close to announcing their first signing.
Unai Emery was on the lookout for a right-back to provide competition for Matty Cash and it appears he’s found one.
It was reported that Villa were closing in on signing Red Star Belgrade right-back Kosta Nedeljković with Fabrizio Romano now confirming that his transfer is imminent.
The Villans’ business isn’t going to stop there, though, as they reportedly prepare to launch a bid for Besiktas wonderkid Semih Kılıçsoy this week.
The 18-year-old striker is on fire in Turkey with five goals in his last four appearances for the club.
In other news, Emery is also looking to bolster the left side of his defence. The future of both Alex Moreno and Lucas Digne is up in the air.
Moreno has been linked with a transfer to AS Roma while Digne continues to attract interest from Saudi Arabia.
The player they are plotting to sign in that position is Josh Doig.
Aston Villa are now ‘watching’ Josh Doig
Doig has been linked with a whole host of sides in this window so far and very nearly moved on from Hellas Verona.
Marseille launched a £4.3m bid for the Scottish defender, however, a deal fell through at the start of the week because the French side “didn’t want to wait any longer” for Verona to give them the green light.
While they’ve now moved on to other targets, GiveMeSport’s Dean Jones claims that Doig is bitterly disappointed at the setback and hopes one more round of talks can turn the situation around for him to complete a move to Marseille.
According to the report, Premier League sides Villa and Fulham have previously made checks on his form in Italy, and are now said to be ‘watching’ the 21-year-old.
Doig can rival Lucas Digne
Verona signed Doig for £5m from Scottish side Hibernian in 2022 and he’s since regularly featured in the Serie A.
In 22 appearances last term, the flying full-back chalked up two goals and four assists, which are impressive numbers for a defender.
If he did join Villa, he would be able to fulfil his “incredible potential” in the Premier League and rival Digne for a spot in the side.
Much like the Frenchman, Doig is known for displaying his creativity from wide areas and likes to get the ball out of his feet and whip crosses into the box.
When comparing their statistics across the past year, as per FBref, the Scottish U21 star averages more successful take-ons (1.51/0.32) and shots per 90 (0.76/0.64), however, Digne comes out on top for shot-creating actions, touches (att pen) and progressive passes received.
He’s generally more capable of producing quality in the final third, but working under Emery can see him transform Doig into a far better player.
