Aston Villa's failed €10m transfer raid on Besiktas revealed - Spurs make move

Aston Villa failed in their attempts to sign Besiktas forward Semih Kilicsoy, it has emerged from reports in Turkey.

Turkish journalist Umut Eken claimed that Villa offered €10m for Kilicsoy in the first few days of the January transfer window. It was proposed by sporting director Monchi that they were open to him remaining with his current club until the end of the season before joining Villa permanently in the summer.

Besiktas however did not entertain the thought of him leaving and rejected the offer. It is added that Besiktas and Villa did not enter any further negotiations and that the deal was dead in the water. Aspor, a Turkish outlet that Spurs have 'followed the player closely' and have sent scouts to watch over him.

Should Villa want to re-enter discussions with Besiktas in signing the young forward then they may have to pay a premium price for him. He signed a new four-year deal in January and that will keep him at the Tüpraş Stadyumu until 2028.

Kilicsoy is enjoying a breakout season for Besiktas' first-team. The 18-year-old has got eight goals in 19 appearances in all competitions this term. He has scored seven goals in The Süper Lig and has also got one assist and is capable of not only playing as a centre forward but also as a winger.

He is still awaiting a call-up to the senior Turkish national team but has been prolific for their age grade sides. Kilicsoy has netted 21 goals in 27 games from the under-15s to under-19s. He could be an outside contender for their EURO 2024 squad, with Turkey set to face Portugal, Czechia and one of the play-off winners.

Villa's apparent attempts to sign Kilicsoy does match the current approach they are making towards transfers. Their first signing of the January transfer window was Kosta Nedeljkovic who joined from Red Star Belgrade for a reported £6.5m. The 18-year-old has been allowed to remain in Serbia until the end of the season and will link up with Villa in the summer where he will provide competition for the right-back spot.