Aston Villa have been linked with a move for Chelsea attacker Hakim Ziyech.
Graham Potter speaks to Hakim Ziyech (Image: 2022 Chelsea FC)
The Moroccan winger has made only ten league appearances for the Blues this season and the competition for places at Stamford Bridge has only intensified this month with the arrivals of Mykhaylo Mudryk, Joao Felix, Noni Madueke and David Datro Fofana – more could join too.
Ziyech, who turns 30 in March, could be one player leaves Chelsea in the next week in order to secure a more regular supply of first-team football, although he has started three of the last four top flight games. Newcastle have been linked, but it’s claimed that Chelsea don’t want to sell to a top four rival – whereas Villa could be considered a viable destination.
The forward, who scored once and appeared in all seven of Morocco’s World Cup matches in Qatar, is well liked and highly rated by new Blues boss Graham Potter, but there are no guarantees that he’ll continue to remain in the starting line-up.
“He played against Man City, and came on against Newcastle. Where he was when we first came, he was a little bit away from the first XI,” Potter said at a press conference just before Christmas.
“He’s been involved in the games and came on in the first game as a sub. We know his qualities, we like him as a player, and he plays between the lines with fantastic quality as we saw in the World Cup.
“At Chelsea, there are always good players who aren’t in the starting XI and have to be patient. Delighted for him, and kept in touch with him over the World Cup. Delighted for him that he got the game time, delighted for him that he helped his team, he’s a good guy and he’s got quality.”
Ziyech, who as well as Villa has also been linked with a move to Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma, recently cryptically posted on Instagram a photo of himself with the caption: “The best way to predict your future…is to create it.”
Villa won’t rush into making additions unless they can get the deals over the line that Unai Emery is keen to conclude – they’re otherwise content to wait until the summer to carry out the bulk of their intended business.
source: birminghammail.co.uk
