Signing rival Jota would make Dean Smith a raiding hero for Aston Villa fans

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Since appointing former Brentford manager Dean Smith as their new boss at Aston Villa plenty of players managed at Griffin Park have been linked with a Midlands swoop.

But if there is one former Smith player South-West London that Aston Villa fans would love to see brought in it is probably Spanish playmaker Jota.

The 27-year-old has been a star in the Championship for a number of years now. He performed well at Brentford under Smith, following a loan spell back in Spain at Eibar as he dealt with personal issues that involved him requiring a return to his homeland.

When Jota left Brentford permanently in August 2017, he did so with one year left of his deal and with the best wishes of Smith.

He left to join Birmingham City, where he still plays his football. Costing the Blues a club record of over £6 million he has since established himself as a first-team regular at St Andrew’s.

Aston Villa would surely take great pleasure in luring him away from their biggest rivals this winter.

“We are all sorry to see Jota leave. He had an extremely productive period for us last season when he returned from his loan spell with Eibar.

“It was a pleasure to work with him and be involved with some of the special performances he produced.”

– Dean Smith after Jota completed Birmingham move

Jota has shown some excellent form recently. With four assists in his last three appearances, he has helped Birmingham to their best form so far this season.

However, with Aston Villa’s rivals struggling financially they would easily be inclined to sell Jota at the right price and he would add a creative spark to the final third at Villa Park.

If Smith pulled this deal off, it might immediately endear him to the Aston Villa faithful.