Aston Villa told they can land 'significantly improved' Lloyd Kelly as expert speaks out
Aston Villa could sign a "great teammate" in Lloyd Kelly, Villa News has exclusively been told by journalist Mirko Di Natale.
With a number of new signings made to bolster Unai Emery's squad further up the pitch, Aston Villa's transfer focus may now switch back to defence.
Indeed, no new defenders are yet to arrive at Villa Park this summer, but the likes of Yeimar Mosquera, Andres Garcia and Sil Swinkels have all departed.
Kelly's name has cropped up in Villa transfer circles over the past few weeks, after enjoying an excellent 2025-26 campaign with Juventus.
He played 35 times in Serie A last term, scoring once and providing one assist, but could now be ready to make his return to the Premier League for 2026-27.
Should he do so, and if Villa Park is to be his destination, then the Villains have been given a very promising reference from a top Juventus journalist on the type of character and player they would be getting.
Why Lloyd Kelly would be slam dunk character to add to Aston Villa's squad
Villa News has been informed of Juventus' probable transfer stance on Kelly this summer, with the Italian giants possibly mulling over a potential sale.
A recent report from Tutto Juve in late June claimed that Kelly is a player on Aston Villa's transfer watchlist.
However, speaking exclusively with Villa News, journalist and exclusive writer for Tutto Juve Di Natale - who has 34,700 followers on X - recently told us that Kelly "isn't a defender who is currently on the market".
Should that transfer stance change in Turin, then speaking exclusively with Villa News, Di Natale has revealed what kind of attributes he would bring to the Villains' dressing room.
"Lloyd is a quiet guy who never acts out, he’s a great teammate in the dressing room," he told us.
So, after not quite being able to stick around at Premier League level during his time with Bournemouth and Newcastle respectively, why is that Kelly has seemingly taken his game to a new level with Juventus?
Where Kelly has improved his game the most in Italy
Despite consistently showing his quality at Championship level with both Bristol City and Bournemouth respectively, Kelly struggled to do so in the Premier League.
Naturally then, that would be justifiable cause for concern amongst the Villa Park faithful over the potential for history to repeat itself should he sign for their team this summer.
But Di Natale's testimony on his time in Turin may go some way to putting those concerns to rest.
"I think his playing style has adapted perfectly to the demands of Italian football, as Serie A requires greater attention to detail and positional awareness," he continued to tell us.
"I’ve seen significant tactical improvement in him - something that isn't really a factor in the Premier League."
It's true that the Italian - and by extension Serie A - game is built around teams playing quality, well-organised and defensive football.
So for Kelly to have really looked the part in this aspect over there says a lot for how much he's improved defensively, and that should fill Villa fans with confidence over his potential signing.
Whether Kelly is indeed a serious target for the Villains remains to be seen, but if he is, then Emery can expect to be signing a far more well-rounded and polished central defender than the one who left the Premier League for Serie A last year.