Aston Villa’s long-running pursuit of Werder Bremen winger Milot Rashica is seemingly reaching its conclusion, one way or another.

Villa are believed to have first watched Rashica in December, with a view to buying him in the January transfer window. However, injuries to John McGinn, Wesley and Tom Heaton threw that plan into disarray. The move for Rashica was put on the backburner and has been resurrected this summer.

It was reported in German outlet DeichStube over the weekend that the Kosovan winger was reluctant to join the Second City club due to fears of getting involved in another relegation battle. However, Kosovan media reported that Villa yesterday met Bremen’s asking price for Rashica. It is also believed that RB Leipzig were interested in Rashica but refused to pay more than £18 million for the winger.

It is thought that the move is in the hands of Rashica’s agents, but is he worth the fuss?

Misfiring wingmen

Despite Trezeguet’s impressive form over the final four games of the season, Villa’s wingers have been largely disappointing this season.

Trezeguet and Anwar El Ghazi made 34 appearances between them, getting a combined 15 goal contributions. On paper, these are both thoroughly decent contributions. Trezeguet’s goals against Crystal Palace and Arsenal were enough to essentially secure survival for Villa as well as make him the club’s second top scorer. However, the full story cannot be told with stats.

Both Trezeguet and El Ghazi flattered to deceive throughout much of the season. El Ghazi put in his best performances on the big stages, such as his assist for Jack Grealish at Old Trafford or his performance in the Carabao Cup final, but for the rest of the season he looked absent. Trezeguet was much the same, putting in fantastic performances at the end of the season as well as against Liverpool and Leicester City in the cup, but looked seemingly uninterested the rest of the time.

The situation on the wings was so desperate that Villa had to deploy Jack Grealish on the left. While Grealish broke through as a winger in 2014, he hadn’t played there since he was 18.

Rashica would offer something totally different on the wing. First of all, he’s a much more creative winger than Trezeguet. While their goals per 90 minutes are almost the same (0.28 for Trezeguet, 0.38 for Rashica), the Kosovan excels in more creative areas. Rashica produces 1.57 passes leading to shots per 90 as well as 0.21 assists per 90. In contrast, Trezeguet produces just 0.05 assists per 90 as well as 0.97 passes leading to shots.

El Ghazi’s creative numbers are more comparable to Rashica’s, though they are all still lower than the Kosovan’s despite racking up 180 more minutes in game time.

On paper, Rashica is a superior scoring and creative force than both of Villa’s current wing options. However, there is one more factor to consider.

Massive outlay

It is expected that Rashica will cost in the region of £22 million in order to prise him away from Werder Bremen this summer.

This would make him the joint-record signing for Villa, tied with the fee Dean Smith paid for Wesley in 2019. A new record transfer has not just been expected of Villa, it’s been demanded. So the outlay isn’t an issue, but the fee would lock Villa off from another long-time target.

Villa have been linked with Brentford’s Said Benrahma for over a year now. A £25 million move collapsed last summer as Villa chose to sign Trezeguet instead. However, Villa have a budget of £100 million this summer so can only sign one of Benrahma or Rashica.

The Algerian winger had another free-scoring season in the Championship last season, netting 17 goals and nine assists in 43 appearances for the Bees. He also worked with Dean Smith before and is looking for a Premier League move. So, the move would be an easy one to make so long as Villa met the asking price. However, there is one key distinction between Benrahma and Rashica. Experience.

Even though Rashica is a year younger than Benrahma, he has three years of top flight experience under his belt. The most recent season was spent embroiled in a relegation battle, which could prove crucial should things go wrong again for Villa next season. The step up from the Championship to the Premier League is an incredibly difficult one to make, as proven by many of Villa’s stars from their promotion season. However, the transition from the Bundesliga to the Premier League is a much more natural one. This means that Rashica should have a much easier time settling in, though nothing is guaranteed in football.

Another thing to consider is the competition for Benrahma’s signature. While Rashica is being tracked by other clubs, there is concrete interest from much of the Premier League for the Brentford wide man. Leeds United, Arsenal, Chelsea and West Ham United have all been mooted as possible destinations for the Algerian. The three London clubs especially are able to offer a larger fee to Brentford as well as larger wages to the player. It may be wiser on a financial level for Villa to look elsewhere.

This should make the Kosovan a slightly safer bet than Benrahma to bring in for a similar fee. Both would be good options for the wing, but the top flight experience of Rashica could prove vital.