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Why £38m Aston Villa signing looks like the next John McGinn

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Published Sep 15, 2026, 6:45 AM GMT+1

Angus is an experienced football writer at Football FanCast, specialising in analytical reporting, opinion and feature writing, with particular expertise in Liverpool, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur.

A journalist since graduating from Southampton Solent University in 2022, Angus has built extensive experience across the football media industry. Before joining Football FanCast, he led VAVEL's Brighton & Hove Albion department, developing experience in club-specific reporting and editorial leadership.

Angus joined Football FanCast through Snack Media's (now Valnet) academy and has since become one of the site's longest-serving writers, progressing into the Opinions and Features team. During his time with Football FanCast, he has produced thousands of articles across a broad range of Premier League clubs and stories.

His work combines analytical reporting, informed opinion and detailed feature writing, with a particular focus on understanding the factors behind performances, transfers and major developments rather than simply reporting the headline. His strongest areas of expertise are Liverpool, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur, although his extensive Premier League coverage has given him a broad understanding of the English top flight.

Angus brings readers experienced, research-led football analysis and considered opinion, using his years of covering the Premier League to provide context, assess players and transfers, and explain what the latest developments mean for clubs and their ambitions.

Aston Villa have not made a good start to the 2026/27 season, but Unai Emery remains stoic, urging calm and patience after a frantic summer of wholesale changes.

This is not the same squad that charged through the Europa League like a battering ram last term, triumphant in the final against feeble Freiburg. That same squad maintained pace throughout the Premier League campaign, finishing fourth.

But so many superstars have gone. Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers and Youri Tielemans and Ezri Konsa and Lucas Digne and Emi Martinez. All gone.

John McGinn remains, though. For the skipper, winning at Villa Park is an incomparable feeling.

How McGinn can spearhead the Aston Villa revival

After Aston Villa got their season up and running last week with a 3-2 Champions League win over Club Brugge in Belgium, the captain's comments showed just how much this club means to him.

"The players who have left have decided the opportunities they’ve had are probably better for them but there is nothing better than playing for Aston Villa in the Champions League."

But defeat against Nottingham Forest at Villa Park on Saturday afternoon was a sobering reality check. The Villans are 19th in the Premier League after four games, one goal and one point for their troubles.

Still, it's not all doom and gloom. You would think that this might be the toughest spot of the term for the Midlands club, certainly from the perspective of coherence. So many new signings will need time to gel, but McGinn has started the season in typically buoyant form, and he could be the difference-maker.

The Scotland star is Villa's all-time leading scorer in European competitions (12 goals), but he has also been a bundle of energy down the right side for Emery's side at the start of the domestic campaign, recovering 5.3 balls per game.

McGinn is 31. His birthday is one month away. He will not be around forever, and it's high time that Aston Villa identify an apt replacement in the centre of the park.

They may well have already.

Emery has already found Aston Villa's new McGinn

McGinn has been the ultimate stalwart for Aston Villa throughout this rich point in their history, and in truth, he might be the definitive superstar of the Emery era.

However, the Scottish midfielder is into the penultimate year of his contract, and while replacing him feels a heavy task, Aston Villa may already have done so through Joao Gomes, who joined the club from Wolves for £38m this summer.

One of the most combative midfielders in the Premier League, Gomes also knows how to crop up with a goal, scoring as Villa lost to Bayern Munich in August, a pre-season friendly on the eve of the new campaign.

Premier League 25/26 - Top Tacklers

Player

Apps

Tackles

James Garner	38	119
Joao Palhinha	33	110
Joao Gomes	35	107
Mateus Fernandes	36	103
Tyrick Mitchell	38	103
Adrien Truffert	38	103

Wolves were woeful in the Premier League last season, but he proved his worth as a player capable of thriving for a Champions League club such as the Villa. He won 6.5 duels per game, but also completed 64% of his dribbles. In terms of tackles won, he blew almost every other Premier League player out of the park.

As Aston Villa's new signings continue to gel, Gomes could become an increasingly influential part of the Villa Park system. He has a certain McGinn-esque energy about him, and his willingness to piledrive into the danger area could copy that element of the Scotsman's skillset too.

Gomes isn't McGinn, but his energy and tough-tackling presence from the heart of the field. He hasn't made a perfect start to his Villan career, but 'The Pitbull', as he is known in his homeland, has won 5.3 duels per game in the Premier League, a force to be reckoned with.

Whether Gomes kicks on remains to be seen, but he has the profile and the presence to eventually replace McGinn as a talismanic figure in Aston Villa's engine room. It looks like Roberto Olabe has struck gold on this one.

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