Aston Villa are reportedly interested in Feyenoord midfielder Orkun Kokcu for the summer, having sent scouts to watch him this season.
The 22-year-old is enjoying an impressive campaign this year, scoring 12 goals and providing three assists in 37 appearances across all competitions for the title-chasing Dutch outfit.
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With 20 caps and two goals to his name for Turkey at senior level, he has gained important experience at a high level already, and he has certainly made a jump this season, albeit he did contribute nine goals and nine assists in 51 games last season and so the consistency and development is there.
As per the report from De Telegraaf, Villa are specifically mentioned as one of the many clubs interested in Kokcu, and it’s suggested that we’ve regularly scouted him this season ahead of a potential swoop this summer.
It’s noted that several other clubs are said to be keen too and so the expectation would be that we will face significant competition if our interest develops, but based on the report above, it seems as though he could be a possible reinforcement for Unai Emery ahead of next season.
Villa have improved significantly under the Spaniard, and the likes of Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn and Douglas Luiz have been instrumental in that upturn in form with their performances in midfield.
Emery has addressed a major issue that we previously had in terms of an inability to win midfield battles and control the tempo and possession in that area of the pitch, but he’ll want to keep evolving and developing and that could mean bringing in new signings this summer to take us forward to the next level.
Kokcu also makes a big impact in the final third based on his numbers above, and so that threat from midfield could also be vital as time will tell if he emerges as a priority this summer.
