da dobrowin： Tammy Abraham may not be the only England international who will join Aston Villa before the end of the January transfer window, as Ruben Loftus-Cheek has also been linked with a move to the club.

da pixbet： Earlier this week, it was reported that the Villans have opened talks with Italian giants AC Milan over a possible deal to sign the central midfielder as a replacement for Boubacar Kamara, who is set to miss the rest of the season through injury.

However, Milan have also started contract negotiations with Loftus-Cheek, as they look to keep hold of the former Chelsea man, and it was claimed that no decision had been made on his future at that point.

The experienced midfielder, who has played for Chelsea, Fulham, and Crystal Palace in England, would arrive at Villa as a player who already knows the Premier League well.

However, Milan wanting to extend his contract at the San Siro suggests that this will not be an easy deal for Unai Emery to get over the line in the coming days.

Emery wants to re-sign star for Aston Villa

Instead of signing Loftus-Cheek, though, the Villans could swoop to sign a player who would be an even better addition to the squad in this window.

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According to Italian outlet TuttoSport, Emery wants to bring central midfielder Douglas Luiz back to Aston Villa for a second spell with the club.

Luiz is currently on loan at Nottingham Forest from Juventus, but is unhappy with his lack of game time and has informed his agent to find him another move before the end of the January transfer window.

The report claims that Chelsea, Vasco Da Gama, Ajax, and Aston Villa are all interested in signing the Brazil international to bolster their squads in the coming days.

Chelsea are said to be leading the race to sign the former Manchester City youngster, though, which means that Villa will have to fight hard to land his signature.

Why Aston Villa must push to sign Douglas Luiz

Emery must push for the club to win the race to sign Luiz from Juventus before the end of the transfer window because he would be an even better signing than Loftus-Cheek.

Both players have struggled for minutes in the 2025/26 campaign, with Loftus-Cheek starting eight league games for Milan and Luiz starting five Premier League matches for Forest, per Sofascore.

The Brazilian star, however, has the edge over the Englishman because he played a whopping 204 times for Aston Villa during his first spell at the club, per Transfermarkt, which means that he is a proven performer for Villa and for Emery.

Luiz scored 22 goals and provided 24 assists in those 204 matches for Villa in all competitions, showing that he can influence matches at the top end of the pitch with goals and assists.

The 27-year-old talent, who was hailed as “amazing” by Emery, left Villa to sign for Juventus in the summer of 2024, less than two years ago, and his last season with the club shows that he would be a phenomenal signing.

23/24 Premier League

Douglas Luiz

Appearances

35

xG

6.97

Goals

9

Big chances created

10

Assists

5

Tackles + interceptions per game

2.4

Duel success rate

51%

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Luiz provided goals, assists, defensive quality, and strength in his final season with Emery at Villa, which is why he would be such a shrewd addition to the squad this month.

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Meanwhile, Loftus-Cheek has never scored more than six goals or provided more than three assists in a single league season in his career, in the Premier League or the Serie A, per Sofascore.

This suggests that Luiz has far more potential to be an influential figure at the top end of the pitch for the Villans, because he can offer a greater threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals from a central midfield position.

His defensive statistics, though, also show that he does not give up much out of possession either. The Brazil international is strong off the ball and in duels, to go along with his technical brilliance.

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Therefore, Villa should press ahead with a move to sign Luiz ahead of Chelsea rather than convincing Milan to part ways with Loftus-Cheek, as his time with the Villans in the past suggests that he would be a much better signing.