Aston Villa failed with deadline day 'hijack' says Fabrizio Romano as Unai Emery discusses transfer business

Aston Villa reportedly tried to hijack Giovani Lo Celso’s move to Real Betis on deadline day but the player was only keen on joining the La Liga club. Villa have had an impressive transfer window but it was a quiet deadline day for the club as they wrapped up their business well in advance of the 11pm cut-off on Friday.

However, Fabrizio Romano claimed they did try and pull off one deadline day deal by ‘pushing’ to sign Lo Celso from Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur. Estadio Deportivo also reported that Villa were looking to sign the player on deadline day. However, Lo Celso opted for a move to Spain as a permanent deal with Real Betis was confirmed on Friday.

A statement from Spurs read: “We have reached agreement with Real Betis for the transfer of Giovani Lo Celso. The move marks a return to the La Liga side for Gio, who joined us from Los Verdiblancos in August, 2019, initially on loan before completing a permanent transfer in January, 2020. The playmaker marked his first start for the Club with a goal in a 4-0 win against Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League in November, 2019 and reached his Spurs century of appearances against Luton Town in March, 2024. He went on to make 108 appearances for us in all competitions, scoring 10 goals. Internationally, Gio was part of the Argentina squad that lifted the Copa America in 2021 and defended their title this summer. Unfortunately, he missed out on La Albiceleste’s World Cup win in 2022 due to injury.”

Villa are in action against Leicester City this weekend, as Unai Emery addressed the clubs summer business in his pre-match press conference. He said: “I’m very happy because we did the things we were planning at the beginning. The squad we have now, with some important players like Tyrone Mings, Boubacar Kamara and Emi Buendia who are coming back progressively and feeling good. Last year Jacob Ramsey didn’t play consistently and hopefully this year he’s going to play consistently during the season with the level he was showing us before and even increasing his level. With other players we have added in the squad this year, I’m very happy.”

Villa won their opening game at West Ham United 2-1 before they were beaten 2-0 by Arsenal last weekend. Leicester drew their opening game with Spurs before losing at Fulham last weekend. Looking ahead to the game, Emery said: “They drew the first match against Tottenham. Tottenham played well and dominated more than Leicester, but Leicester competed fantastically. Jamie Vardy is always very dangerous and we have to be alert. Maybe he’ll touch the ball three times but one is a goal. Their structure tactically, defensively and offensively, is good and I appreciate how they are playing. They lost at Fulham but they were competing very well.

“It’s going to be very difficult and we have to respect them because if we don’t they can threaten us. We have to be focussed on the small details to stop their press, to stop their transition and their positions when they are attacking. They have good players with skills. We are aware of the difficulties we are going to face, but we are planning to get something from there and play being demanding in our tactical idea and imposing it.”