Fabrizio Romano: Aston Villa close to deadline day deal as loan move gets green light

Aston Villa are close to finalising a deadline day deal, with young full-back Lino Sousa set to join Rotherham United on a loan agreement according to reports.

The 21-year-old left-back is now set for his third spell away from Villa Park following short-term moves to Plymouth Argyle and Bristol Rovers, with Fabrizio Romano reporting via social media that Sousa is “on the verge of leaving” the club with the deal now said to be “agreed.”

Lino Sousa set for loan spell at Rotherham United

The Lisbon-born defender, who has represented England up to Under-19 level, has yet to make a senior appearance for Aston Villa since joining from Arsenal in February 2024.

The youngster immediately joined Plymouth upon his arrival at Villa Park, playing eight matches for the Pilgrims, and then made 29 appearances for Bristol Rovers before their relegation to League Two in the second half of the 2024/25 season.

Having failed to force his way into Unai Emery’s first-team plans over the course of the first half of the current campaign, Sousa will now get another chance to continue his development at Rotherham, who are currently battling against the drop in League One.

The details of the loan agreement are yet to be revealed, but it is expected that Sousa will stay with Rotherham for the rest of the season before getting another chance to prove his worth to Emery over the summer.

Aston Villa set for quiet deadline day despite loan deals

Sousa is set to become the third Villa player to leave the club on loan on transfer deadline day, following fellow young prospects Louie Barry and Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba – who have joined Stockport County and West Bromwich Albion respectively – out of the club.

Samuel Iling-Junior is also set for a fresh loan move following the end of his stint at the Hawthorns, with the versatile left-sided player expected to join Italian outfit Pisa for the second half of the campaign.

Villa could also potentially agree the exit of defender Kosta Nedeljkovic, who is wanted by Serie A side Fiorentina, although that deal is complicated as the Serbian is currently on loan at RB Leipzig, for whom he has made just five Bundesliga appearances.

Aside from loan deals, Aston Villa are expected to be quiet on transfer deadline day, with Emery telling the media that he expected no more incomings before the window closes at 7pm.

“We don’t have a lot of possibilities or opportunities to do something improving now,” Emery said. “We did everything we were planning. I’m sorry, it’s completely done, I think, the transfer window for us.”

One piece of business which could take place, however, is a change to the loan agreement which brought Harvey Elliott to Villa Park over the summer. As it stands, Aston Villa are compelled to buy the Liverpool midfielder for £35m if he makes three more appearances in all competitions. That could now be adjusted, to ensure that Elliott can get further playing time without triggering a purchase which Villa appear to wish to avoid.