Aston Villa confirmed the signing of Nicolo Zaniolo on loan from Galatasaray on Friday night, as Unai Emery added another exciting talent to his squad.
Following the arrivals of Youri Tielemans, Pau Torres and Moussa Diaby already this summer, Zaniolo becomes our fourth signing in this window, with the 24-year-old joining on an initial loan move for the rest of the season, as confirmed by Villa’s statement.
Sign up for the Talk Villa newsletter, a free weekly Villa round-up delivered straight to you!
As per Fabrizio Romano, we have an option to buy included in the agreement, and a permanent move could cost us €27m in total including add-ons if we opt to trigger the clause, but time will tell if he impresses enough this year to earn a permanent switch.
His switch to England comes after impressing for Roma where he scored 24 goals and provided 18 assists in 128 appearances, and while he left the Giallorossi for Turkey in February, Zaniolo quickly made a big impression on the Galatasaray fans who have made no secret on social media of how highly they regard him following news of his departure.
Having now completed his move to join us though, Talk Villa spoke with Editor of Football Italia, Lorenzo Bettoni, to get some expert insight into what we can expect from Zaniolo this season and to answer some of the more pressing questions on the Italian international.
What can Villa fans expect from Zaniolo?
“Villa fans can expect a lot of talent, still largely unexpressed. Zaniolo has had good moments in his career but he has to reach the peak, and it’s time to reach the peak at 24. He’s a player who can be deployed in different roles, he’s been playing as an attacking winger, an attacking midfielder, as a centre forward. He has developed his physicality over the years, so he can combine this outstanding physical strength with his technique.”
What is Zaniolo’s character like off the pitch?
“In the past, he did have moments as a trouble-maker. At Galatasaray though, he didn’t cause any trouble and even at Roma, even if he did force his exit at the beginning of the year, he didn’t create much trouble towards Mourinho.
In fact, Mourinho defended Zaniolo until the very end until it was clear that he wanted to leave. He always said that he was a serious professional, he’s a good guy and he showed commitment in every training session. I think that he can adapt, work well under Unai Emery and he has matured enough over the last year or year-and-a-half not to cause any trouble inside the dressing room.”
He’s had trouble with injuries in the past, should that be a concern for Villa fans?
“His fitness could be a slightly bigger concern. He had two big knee injuries in the past, but he was really unlucky. However, he was fit at Galatasaray, he made around 11 appearances in four or five months which is decent. Injuries have a lot to do with luck, and I’m quite sure if Aston Villa decide to sign him for such a big fee, then they would have had guarantees that at least he doesn’t have any structural problems.”
What’s the reaction like in Italy, is it a good move for his ambitions with the national team?
“I think it’s an excellent move for him and the national team because we have a new coach with Luciano Spalletti replacing Roberto Mancini. Zaniolo made his debut under Mancini, he owes a lot to him, he was very close to Mancini. However, he’s one of the best Italian talents out there so I don’t think Spalletti will just drop him.
He will be considered by Spalletti. I think on paper, just based on talent, he’s one of the best strikers that Italy has, so Spalletti will keep a close eye on him and probably now he’s playing in the most competitive league in the world and in European competition too, it will give him chances to show his worth and hopefully return to playing with the national team on a regular basis.”
It promises to be an exciting journey seeing Zaniolo in a Villa shirt, and it’s hoped that we see him maximise his quality and potential under Emery, who has improved every player at his disposal since he arrived at the club last year.
Much was said about his potential injury and fitness issues prior to the official announcement from Villa on Friday night, with reports suggesting that there were problems with his medical and that we perhaps wanted to re-negotiate terms.
As per Football Italia, his mother, Francesca Costa, took to social media to dismiss ‘fake news’ in the Italian media, and so it’s now hoped that we’ll see him excel during his time with us in a settled and successful stint this season and perhaps beyond.
You can follow Lorenzo on Twitter for more expert Italian football knowledge and more on Zaniolo throughout the season.