'Within hours' - Aston Villa move to swiftly seal £25m transfer for Emery favourite after key deal setback

Aston Villa picked up a 1-1 draw at home to West Ham on Sunday afternoon. Jacob Ramsey scored their goal against the Hammers in the first-half.

Unai Emery’s side are currently sat in 8th place in the Premier League. They are four points off the top four as they look to get into Europe again.

Aston Villa have the chance to bring in some new players before the end of the January transfer window. They also have the opportunity to let some individuals head out the exit door as well should they wish to.

Aston Villa eye Juan Foyth

Aston Villa are interested in signing Juan Foyth from Villarreal this winter. Emery has said, as per a report by El Desmarque: “I know him because I’ve worked with him. He’s one of the players who, with his quality, can act in various positions. We want to sign him for our team.”

Spanish news outlet AS claim a decision on the player’s future will be made ‘within hours’. Emery could see him as someone to add more competition and depth to his defensive department.

Foyth, 27, rose up through the academy at Estudiantes and broke into their first-team as a youngster before moving over to Europe. Tottenham Hotspur snapped him up in 2017 and he spent four years in London. The Buenos Aires-born man made 32 appearances for Spurs during his time in England before Villarreal came calling. He initially joined the La Liga club on loan before his switch was later made permanent.

Emery has worked with him in the past and is now keen to reunite. It remains to be seen at this stage whether an agreement will be struck as Villa weigh up their options.

What next for Aston Villa?

Aston Villa are back in Champions League action on Wednesday night with a home clash against Celtic. They then lock horns with rivals Wolves away on Saturday.

Speaking after their draw with West Ham, Emery said: “We started very well and we were dominating and imposing with our positioning. We avoided their possibilities to have good chances to score and were defending well. But in 90 minutes with only one goal, we had an advantage and it was difficult to keep it. They scored and they drew.

“We missed a little bit some fresh legs and we tried with Jhon Durán, with Malen, with Buendía, but maybe without the central midfielders and central defenders, and with Lucas at centre-back in place of Mings, we were a little bit without the power we usually have.”

Meanwhile, left-back Ian Maatsen also said: “It’s a bit bitter. We started excellent the first half, when I was watching off the bench. And then, obviously a lot of changes [through] injury, and we had to adapt quick.

“So, [I] came on and it was a lot of duels, a lot of physical [play], both teams. The games get more tough when it’s 1-0. They’re still believing, they had a few chances, and it was a scrappy game.”