Aston Villa need to navigate some financial hurdles. Despite the £50m windfall after qualifying for the Champions League, despite selling Jack Grealish to Manchester City for a British-record £100m fee in 2021, despite enjoying incremental growth under Unai Emery and reaching the Europa Conference League semi-finals.
According to a recent report from Football Insider, the Villans are indeed walking on thin ice in relation to Premier League profit and sustainability rules and need to raise at least £60m in player sales after seeing their proposal to raise the allowable loss limit over a rolling three-year period rejected.
It's for this reason, perhaps, that rumours surrounding Douglas Luiz's summer sale won't subside. Italian sources suggest that Juventus and Liverpool are pushing for his signature but have been met with Villa's demands of a €70m (£59m) payment for the Brazil midfielder.
Interesting that Villa should list Luiz at such a figure. Jacob Ramsey, who is homegrown, and Diego Carlos and Philippe Coutinho, who are two of Villa Park's highest earners, are also being touted with exits. But if these blocks can be moved aside before the deadline at the end of the month, Emery could then move for some exciting additions to bolster his Champions League-awaiting squad.
Aston Villa transfer news
According to the one and only Fabrizio Romano, writing in his Caught Offside column, Aston Villa are interested in signing Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher this summer, who is valued at £50m and being pushed toward the exit as the Blues seek to recoup funds ahead of their summer spending.
Tottenham Hotspur are also named as suitors after fighting to sign the 24-year-old over the duration of Ange Postecoglou's tenure, but with Champions League football on offer, Emery will be confident in getting a deal sorted.
Gallagher is out of contract in 12 months and it looks unlikely that he will agree fresh terms at Stamford Bridge, so this one could accelerate with speed once the ball starts rolling.
Why Villa are interested in Conor Gallagher
If Luiz is sold, Gallagher would arrive for a similar figure, which does beg the question: does the Chelsea man have a suitable skill set to succeed Emery's stalwart, who has been called "influential and complete" by The Athletic's Jacob Tanswell?
In a single word: yes. Gallagher is dynamic and expressive in his play while upholding impressive defensive qualities and outworking all around him, both on his side and opposing him.
This season, Gallagher scored seven goals and provided nine assists across 50 appearances in all competitions and was hailed for bringing "balance and chemistry" to his squad by Chelsea correspondent Liam Twomey.
Having started all 37 of the Premier League matches he was available, it's clear he was held in high regard by Mauricio Pochettino, with his distinctive set of skills proving instrumental in the west London outfit's resurgence over recent months.
His complete style, like Luiz's, has proved long-time observers such as The Athletic's Mike Stravrou right, who said back in 2022: "Conor Gallagher was absolutely relentless with his pressing and energy tonight. Some player Chelsea have got."
He is not a defensive midfielder, even if he boasts some notable metrics that speak of his quality in front of the backline, averaging 2.3 tackles, 5.7 successful duels and six ball recoveries per game in the Premier League, as per Sofascore.
But then neither really was Luiz an out-and-out defensive midfielder in the traditional sense, with the South American only deployed as Emery's No. 6 eight times across a 49-match campaign.
So, how would it work?
How Gallagher could fit in at Villa
For the lion's share of the first half of the season, Luiz played alongside Boubacar Kamara in the centre of the park, though the Frenchman has been sidelined since February with an ACL injury and is not expected to return until the later months of the year.
The equilibrium found in this Luiz-Kamara axis proved most fruitful and given that both Kamara and Villa captain John McGinn are listed as similar players to Gallagher – as per Football Transfers – Emery and Monchi might just be on to something in approaching Chelsea.
Matches played
37
35
20
Matches started
37
35
20
Goals
5
6
0
Assists
7
4
1
Pass completion
92%
83%
89%
Touches per game
70.4
49.1
63.2
Key passes per game
1.4
1.3
1.0
Ball recoveries per game
6.0
4.6
4.9
Tackles per game
2.3
1.7
2.2
Dribbles per game
1.0 (68%)
1.5 (67%)
0.7 (54%)
Duels won per game
5.7 (50%)
5.5 (50%)
5.3 (49%)
The player-comparison table above highlights that while Villa's two players are indeed similar to Gallagher, he is actually crisper, more creative and more combative than both of them, taking the most touches and enjoying the most prolific return.
Of course, Kamara's game is not based on goals and assists and nor is McGinn's measured by his pass completion, especially given that the tireless Scotsman was a regular feature on the left flank during the closing months of the campaign, featuring 16 times at left midfield, more so than any other position.
Still, Gallagher is something of a hybrid of the two players and perhaps this is exactly what Aston Villa need heading into the new campaign, especially having already closed in on a deal to sign Ross Barkley from Luton Town for a crisp £5m fee.
Gallagher would complete Villa's midfield and ensure that, even if Luiz's departure is acquiesced to in the coming weeks, the outfit's Spanish manager has a robust and diverse crop of players to fuel his system and ensure that the recently concluded term does not stand as the apex of the side's modern efforts.
Instead, by securing players such as Gallagher, Villa Park will only continue to go from strength to strength.
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