Aston Villa ‘issue price tag’ to Premier League rivals over midfielder as ‘transfer target’ speaks out

Aston Villa are back on the training pitch and working towards the start of the new season.

Steven Gerrard and his men will be desperate to improve on last season’s 14th place finish, and their cause will be helped by a number of new signings.

Villa have spent significantly to improve their squad this summer, landing the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Diego Carlos.

But they have also managed some very smart shopping, snapping up Boubacar Kamara on a free transfer.

Further additions are expected, and we could also see a number of exits before the summer window draws to a close.

With that in mind, we have rounded up all the latest transfer news and rumours surrounding Villa Park.

Luiz interest

Arsenal are said to have expressed an interest in signing Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz.

The Lions are willing to sell the Brazilian this summer as they look to balance the books, with fresh faces added to the midfield.

According to Goal, the Gunners have enquired about the possibility of signing Luiz, and they have been told how much they will have to pay.

It’s claimed Arsenal have been told they will need to pay £25million to complete the deal, with AC Milan also said to be interested.

Oxlade-Chamberlain speaks

Reported Villa target Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain appears to be fully concentrated on life at Liverpool, despite speculation over his future.

He said: “Just be fit and available and be as ready as possible to compete and to play football and then when I’m playing or getting the opportunities to play, I know then that I set high expectations for myself.

“But at the start of things you’ve just got to make sure that you’re fit and available for selection and then you get the chance to put your targets into practice.

“We’ve got a tough pre-season to get through first so that’s first and then I know what qualities I have and the type of player I want to be: attacking and scoring or providing goals, driving the team forward.

“So they’re the things I look to do and whatever will happen will happen, so we’ll see.”