Aston Villa tipped to sanction bold £60m sale to raise funds for ‘surprise’ marquee signing
Unai Emery and Monchi could sanction one of the big surprise transfers of the summer.
Aston Villa have been tipped to cause the surprise of the transfer window by authorising a significant sale and signing a top-class replacement.
The Villans recently said farewell to any PSR concerns with an agreed sale of their women’s team but there’s still lots of business to do in the next two months to ensure UEFA’s squad cost rules (SCR) are met. High-earning players could leave to help in that regard.
Emiliano Martinez and Leon Bailey have been among those speculated to be on the transfer list as Villa seek to avoid punishments. They may not be the only two, however, with Villa’s top scorer for the past two seasons now tipped to be sacrificed.
Villa could sell Watkins in shock turn of events
TBR Football chief correspondent, Graeme Bailey, has suggested Villa will sell star striker Ollie Watkins amid interest from Manchester United. Initial talks have already been held between Man Utd and Villa over a potential deal, with Marcus Rashford even discussed as a possible makeweight.
Understood to be valued at around £60 million, Watkins could generate a huge source of income for Villa and take a large weight off their wage bill. It awaits to be seen if Man Utd would be willing to meet such a high valuation but there’s no doubting Watkins is in the peak of his powers and will demand a big fee.
Bailey reckons there could be some big developments surrounding the England international, whether that be involving Man Utd or another club. “I think Watkins’ future is really one to keep an eye on this summer — do they think they can find an upgrade? It’ll be fascinating to see what Villa do. I could see them doing something very big up front,” Bailey said.
“Could we see Villa coming for a big striker late doors? I wouldn’t rule them out. As we’ve seen, Emery and Monchi are prepared to make these big decisions when it’s right for the club. Diaby and Duran were both sold to the Saudi Pro League and Monchi will explore every option available to the club.”
‘Surprise’ signing could arrive through Villa Park doors
Villa could replace Watkins in style, Bailey believes, with a major surprise signing potentially being kept under wraps. Even someone in a similar ball park to Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres - heavily linked with the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Man Utd - could be within Villa’s sights.
“Let’s keep an eye out,” Bailey continued. “I do get this feeling that Villa are going to do something huge that we don’t have a clue about right now. They’re a club who could definitely spring that surprise. Villa are ones to watch in the striker market, I don’t think they’ll get Gyokeres for instance, but I also don’t think they’ll be a million miles away.”
In reality, Villa are unlikely to let Watkins leave as it will be very difficult to sign a replacement who can be more financially viable than the England man. That hasn’t stopped Bailey from having his say, though, and Villa could well surprise everyone.