Aston Villa ‘in talks’ to complete Christian Purslow replacement deal that will delight Unai Emery

Aston Villa are said to be closing in on a new sporting director following the departure of Christian Purslow.

Purslow decided to step down from his role after five years after seeing his power reduced over recent times, with new head coach Unai Emery getting more control over transfers and other club matter. But Villa still plan to replace Purslow, and they already have a candidate in mind.

According to The Telegraph, Villa are eyeing Sevilla chief Monchi as they prepare for a campaign in the Europa Conference League.

Monchi has masterminded a number of Sevilla’s successes, particularly in the Europa League, including three won by current Villa boss Emery. The former Sevilla player actually left the Andalusian club in 2016 after a falling out with the higherarchy in spite of him masterminding 11 trophies during his first spell, but after spending time with AS Roma, he returned to his beloved club in 2019.

He has since won another Europa League club, this season, and that was despite the club struggling in La Liga this term.

He could now be headed to Villa, but Sevilla put up a big fight the last time another club came calling, hence the fallout around the time of his first exit. They are likely to be reluctant to lose Monchi again, especially after this season’s success, but Aston Villa also need a new sporting director, and they have already shown a willingness to pay to get what they want.

Villa paid Villarreal more than £5milllion to land Emery in October, and that proved to be a fine decision given the turnaround the Basque boss managed at Villa Park this season. They will now have to pay again to land Monchi, with talks ongoing, but they will get a recruitment specialist with a proven winning record.