Aston Villa certainly did not enjoy a quiet January transfer window before the deadline on Monday as they made several moves in an attempt to improve their squad.
Monchi and Unai Emery made bold moves as they look for an improved second half of the season, with the Villans currently sat in eighth place in the Premier League.
Arguably, the biggest decision they made in the winter window was the one to cash in on Jhon Duran, who made a £64m move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr.
That deal came after Villa had also sold Jaden Philogene to Ipswich Town and Diego Carlos to Fenerbahce, which freed up the funds for the club to bring in new recruits.
The Villans ended the window with Marcus Rashford in on loan from Manchester United, Donyell Malen and Andres Garcia in on permanent deals, as well as Axel Disasi and Marco Asensio on loan on deadline day.
Asensio was the second-to-last player to complete his move to Villa Park, as the Spanish forward joined on lona from Paris Saint-Germain until the end of the season.
What Marco Asensio could bring to Aston Villa
The 29-year-old star has arrived in England to provide Emery with a fantastic, versatile, attacking option for the Villans for the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.
He has the ability to play on either flank as a winger or as an attacking midfielder, whilst the Champions League winner has also played as a centre-forward before.
There is no doubt that Asensio comes with a huge pedigree. He has won three Champions League trophies, four La Liga titles, one Ligue 1 title, and played for Real Madrid and PSG, which shows that the forward knows how to win the best silverware and how to handle the pressure of playing for teams that are desperate to win trophies.
That is the level Villa may want to aspire to be at and the Spain international could come in to help with that cultural shift, by bringing high standards and a winning mentality with him.
The 29-year-old ace scored 61 goals and provided 32 assists in 286 matches for Real before his move to PSG in the summer of 2023. Asensio then went on to produce seven goals and 11 assists in 47 appearances for the French giants.
These statistics show that the Spaniard has proven himself to be able to make a big impact at the top end of the pitch, on the wing or as a number ten, in two of Europe’s major leagues.
Villa will now be hoping that he can bring that experience and quality over to their Premier League and Champions League matches in the coming weeks and months, as the forward could be a terrific option for Emery if he can hit his stride in England.
Despite all of that pedigree, all of his achievements, and the fact he is coming in from PSG, Asensio is, reportedly, not among the top ten earners at the club.
Aston Villa's top ten earners after signing Asensio
According to Capology, the former Real Madrid man is on a wage of £116.5k-per-week with Villa, which makes him the 11th-highest earner in the squad at the moment.
Fellow winter transfer window recruit Marcus Rashford is at at the top of the pile on a reported weekly wage of £225k, which is £75k more per week than the second-highest earner, Youri Tielemans.
Marcus Rashford
£225k
Youri Tielemans
£150k
Emi Martinez
£150k
Boubacar Kamara
£150k
Amadou Onana
£140k
Donyell Malen
£140k
Ollie Watkins
£130k
John McGinn
£120k
Lucas Digne
£120k
Leon Bailey
£120k
As you can see in the table above, Asensio does not crack the top ten list, whilst Malen and Rashford have arrived to position themselves in there, and that may come as a surprise given the clubs that the Spanish whiz has played for in his career.
One of Aston Villa's highest earners must be dropped after Asensio signing
One of the players in that top ten list, however, could finally be ditched from the starting XI by Emery after the signing of the PSG forward on loan, and that is attacking midfielder John McGinn.
The Scotland international has started 17 of his 20 appearances in the Premier League this season, mostly playing on the right wing or as the number ten behind Ollie Watkins.
His weekly wage of £120k means that the midfield star earns significantly more than Villa sensation Morgan Rogers, who reportedly earns £75k-per-week.
The England international has racked up ten goals and five assists in 32 appearances in all competitions for the Villans, including three goals and one assist in eight matches in the Champions League.
These statistics show that Rogers has provided a big threat at the top end of the pitch from an attacking midfield position, and the same cannot be said of McGinn, unfortunately.
Chalkboard
The Scottish midfielder ended the 2023/24 campaign with a return of nine goals and seven assists in 53 appearances in all competitions for the club, which was a very solid return for the former Hibernian maestro.
Unfortunately, however, McGinn’s form has declined and he has failed to provide consistent quality at the top end of the pitch in the Premier League so far this season.
Starts
17
xG
1.89
Goals
0
Key passes per game
1.1
xA
1.98
Assists
3
As you can see in the table above, the Scotland international has underperformed against his xG and his assist tally has been inflated by quality finishing from his teammates, whilst it also shows that Rogers has offered far more on £45k less per week.
These statistics show that McGinn has struggled to make a meaningful impact in the final third in the top-flight when playing on the right wing or as a number ten, which is why Emery should use the signing of Asensio to ditch him from the team.
As aforementioned, the Spain international has a history of providing goals and assists for PSG and Real Madrid, whilst playing in similar positions, and that is why the manager should include him in the starting XI over McGinn in the second half of the season.
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