Aston Villa transfers: Five for Remi Garde to sign in January

Holly Thackeray | November 3, 2015

Five potential Remi Garde relegation escape recruits

As freshly appointed Aston Villa boss Remi Guarde will have noted, while watching the Villans (7/4 with Coral to stay up) leak three strikes to Spurs, the Midlands club require reinforcements if they are to cling on to their Premier League status.

Former Lyon gaffer Garde of course has French connections, but who could the coach realistically sign to boost his chances of keeping Villa (9/5 to finish bottom) in the top-tier?

Serge Gnabry (Arsenal/West Bromwich Albion)

Typically, having also received part of his footballing education in Germany, the young winger possesses both technical skill in abundance, but also grit and directness. So much so, that Mikel Arteta once likened guileful Gnabry to being “like a little boxer, he’s a little fighter.” Garde could surely make use of that.

Clement Grenier (Lyon)

Raiding the Kids for the likes of Alexandre Lacazette would be a mere pipe dream, but one realistic pick could be five-capped French international Grenier. Villa require a player able to feed starved-of-service striker Rudy Gestede and unlock stubborn defences, and the 24-year-old playmaker, brought through the ranks under Garde, just might fit the bill.