Aston Villa are on the path to glory under Unai Emery, with the Spaniard initiating a host of changes at Villa Park following his arrival in October 2022.
The former Arsenal boss took charge from Steven Gerrard when the Villans were sat in 16th in the Premier League table, and ended his first campaign in seventh and with a spot in the Europa Conference League.
Despite only being in the Midlands for under a year, Emery has inspired the squad to new heights, succeeding on and off the pitch, as highlighted this summer in the transfer market.
Joined by Monchi as President of Football Operations, the four-time Europa League winner conducted an impressive window of business, welcoming five new faces to Villa Park.
The captures of Youri Tielemans, Moussa Diaby, Nicolo Zaniolo, Pau Torres and Clement Lenglet have added strength in a number of positions, with their quality signalling an additional pull that the manager has given Villa to attract top talent.
While the new additions have been welcomed with open arms to Emery’s squad, the Spaniard wasn’t able to seal the deal on all the players he was suspected to have targeted this summer.
From Joao Felix to Marco Asensio, Villa were linked with a host of talent, however the Villans were taught a lesson by one of their rumoured targets just last weekend.
Did Aston Villa nearly sign Hwang Hee-chan?
According to the Mirror, Villa were one of the sides interested in Wolverhampton Wanderers star Hwang Hee-chan this summer.
The report dated back to May claimed that the Villans were joined by Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and Roma as those eyeing a potential move for the South Korean speedster.
It was added that Emery’s side had ‘registered interest’ in the forward, who arrived in Wolverhampton on a permanent basis last summer for a fee of £14m after impressing on an initial season-long loan from RB Leipzig.
Nicknamed “the bull” throughout his playing career, the versatile forward has come to life at Molineux, making Villa’s reported interest understandable as he continues to impress in the Premier League.
What is Hwang Hee-chan’s market value?
As per CIES Football Observatory, the 27-year-old has a current market value of €15m (£13m), suggesting that the price Wolves paid for his services last summer was a fair estimation with regard to his quality.
Not only does his value indicate that the Old Gold secured the forward in a strong piece of business, but also that the Villans could have snatched his talents for a slim price if further interest was identified this summer.
How many goals has Hwang Hee-chan scored?
Deployable on either wing and as a centre-forward, Hwang has contributed to a total of 125 goals in 279 domestic appearances so far in his career, scoring 78 and assisting 47 representing a host of clubs.
From his early playing days in South Korea, the dynamic forward has flourished in Austria, Germany and England, donning the shirts of FC Liefering, RB Salzburg, Hamburg, RB Leipzig and of course, the Old Gold of Wolves.
Hwang Hee-chan domestic scoring record
Club
Apps
Goals
Assists
FC Liefering
29
3
4
Hamburg
21
2
2
RB Salzburg
126
45
29
RB Leipzig
29
3
4
Wolves
72
15
4
All figures via Transfermarkt
The Korean made quite the noise in Austria the season prior to his move to Germany, as he scored 16 goals and registered a monstrous 22 assists in all competitions for Salzburg in 2019/20.
That campaign, Hwang recorded eight goal contributions in just six Champions League appearances for his club, highlighting just how dangerous the forward can be at the highest level of domestic football in Europe.
The success of that term saw the winger move to the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig, however his streak of having a hand in goals was not fully translated, as he recorded just one assist and no goals in 18 Bundesliga appearances.
At Wolves, the 27-year-old seems to have rediscovered his form, with his direct nature of play and strength on the ball seeming to be an ideal fit for the physicality and demand of playing in the English top-flight.
What is Hwang Hee-chan doing now?
Last season marked Hwang’s first as a Wolves player, with his first spell at Molineux coming as a loan in which he scored five league goals in 30 appearances in 2021/22.
It was a tough year for all associated with the Midlands club, who were threatened by relegation, as well as having the playing styles altered by three different managers during the 2022/23 campaign.
Steve Davis took charge of the squad between the sacking of Bruno Lage and the arrival of Julen Lopetegui, as Wolves weathered the storm between relegation and survival.
Subsequently, Hwang’s form was a shadow of what it had been in the past and what it has become this term, with him netting just three goals in 27 Premier League appearances, where he started just 12 games.
Under Gary O’Neil, things seem to have clicked instantaneously for the £14m man, with him being full of praise for his new manager whom he called “amazing” and “very calm”, relaying that the squad have full trust in him, via Express and Star.
The praise has been reciprocated by the former Bournemouth manager, who lauded his forward as an “intelligent” asset to have in his team, supported by his flying start to the 2023/24 season at Molineux.
So far in the Premier League this term, Hwang has scored five goals in eight games, contributing to over half of Wolves goals and sitting at joint-third in the top-scorer chart so far this term level with Jarrod Bowen and Mohamed Salah.
What could Hwang Hee-chan have offered to Villa?
With reference to how life could have been if Hwang was pursued by Aston Villa this summer, the Villans could have added a stellar forward to their ranks as they know first-hand the danger he can cause.
Last time out for Emery’s side, the Korean was at the heart of Wolves’ 1-1 draw with Villa, opening the scoring after 53 minutes of play.
While the Spaniard recruited well this summer, there is still a long way to go in terms of calculating the extent of depth that the squad will require going forward, with talents in Hwang’s position such as Leon Bailey already missing game time due to injury.
The worry for Villa is the lack of quality to replace first-team absences, areas that could have been eased by the Korean, based on players currently at the club that are lesser performers than him.
One player who could have been offloaded to allow Hwang to come into the plans at Villa Park is Bertrand Traore, who was shipped on loan last term to Turkish outfit Basaksehir in a bid to rediscover his form.
You’d have to go back to the 2020/21 campaign to revise when Traore last played consistently for the Villans, with the former Chelsea man averaging a rate of 54% successful dribbles per game and scoring a high of seven goals, via Sofascore.
This term, Hwang has averaged 67% successful dribbles per game for Wolves in the Premier League, as well as already netting five goals, just two shy of Traore’s best-ever tally in England.
In signing their rivals' star man, Emery could’ve added a significant upgrade to his depth, in a move that could have benefitted the Villans to a similar effect that he has aided his club so far this term.
