Arthur Melo, a Juventus midfielder, struggled at Liverpool last season, but the former Barcelona player can be a huge success under Unai Emery at Aston Villa.
Unai Emery’s tremendous work at Aston Villa since taking over in October not only means the return of European competition to Villa Park next season, but also the enticement of some players who were previously out of the club’s reach.
The Villans have already moved to sign free agent Youri Tielemans, who is a better player than his past season suggests, while Harry Maguire and Hirving Lozano are two other high-profile names who could be on their radar.
Arthur Melo’s name may not raise as many eyebrows, owing to his disastrous loan term at rival Premier League club Liverpool last season, but it is not often that Villa have the opportunity to recruit a player with Barcelona and Juventus on their CV.
According to Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport, Villa has a strong interest in the Brazilian international, who may provide a new dimension to the Villans’ midfield.
First, let’s address the elephant in the room. Arthur’s loan time with Liverpool was nothing short of a disaster, with only one substitute appearance entire season – a 4-1 Champions League loss against Napoli.
That was due primarily to injury issues, but there is no disputing that the 26-year-old simply did not fit in at Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp. That is not to argue that the same would be true in the Midlands under Emery.
According to FBref, Arthur ranks in the top 1% of all players for passes attempted per 90 minutes (99.74), with 93.3% of them completed during Juventus’ 2021-22 Champions League season.
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