Aston Villa secured themselves European football for next season as they finished seventh in the Premier League table under Unai Emery.
The Villans will be playing in the Europa Conference League and their participation could help their ambitions during the transfer window, as they will be able to offer players a chance to compete on the continent as well as the English top-flight.
One talent the club have been linked with a swoop for is Fenerbahce magician Arda Guler, who is reportedly attracting interest from a host of European teams ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.
Fabrizio Romano revealed that the exciting youngster is available for a fee of €17.5m (£15m) due to a release clause in his contract with the Turkish side, which could open the door for Villa to swoop in.
What is Arda Guler's style of play?
He is a left-footed wizard who is often deployed as a right winger or attacking midfielder and has the quality to make a big impact in the final third.
The 18-year-old dynamo has the potential to be a dream upgrade for Emery on current Villa winger Leon Bailey, who is also a left-footed forward.
During the 2022/23 campaign, the Jamaica international averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.67 across 26 Premier League starts. He contributed in the final third with four goals to go along with four assists and 0.9 key passes per game.
Bailey ranked 15th in the squad for Sofascore ratings and sixth for chances created per outing, which was led by Jacob Ramsey and Douglas Luiz with 1.2.
Guler, meanwhile, enjoyed a terrific Super Lig campaign with Fenerbahce. The teenager, who was dubbed a “sensation” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, averaged a phenomenal Sofascore rating of 7.48 across 20 appearances, including 11 starts, and chipped in with four goals to go along with three assists and two key passes per match.
His average rating dwarfed Villa's best performer – Luiz (7.10) – and he managed 0.8 more chances created per game than any of Emery's aforementioned stars.
Although it is impossible to predict whether or not he can translate his form for Fenerbahce over to the Premier League, these statistics suggest that the potential is there for Guler to be an outstanding performer for the Villans as a creative winger on the right.
At the age of 18, he is also seven years younger than Bailey and could be an immediate upgrade on the former Bayer Leverkusen man by providing more quality, in his average performance level and his ability to open up defences for his teammates on a regular basis.