Jacob Ramsey state of play as Newcastle United in talks over 'imminent' £40m Aston Villa transfer
The latest on the Jacob Ramsey transfer saga as Aston Villa and Newcastle United enter crunch talks.
Newcastle United are now closing in on the signing of Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey, with a deal likely to be struck as soon as today.
The Magpies have been interested in Ramsey for several successive transfer windows and are now finally moving ahead with a deal to lure the playmaker to St. James’ Park. Eddie Howe is understood to be a huge admirer of Ramsey and the player is thrilled by the prospect of the move.
As Birmingham World reported earlier this week, Villa are understood to have offered Ramsey a new contract as Unai Emery was eager to keep him. According to The Athletic, negotiations have been ongoing for several months and an agreement was never reached, so all parties decided to explore a transfer away.
Newcastle United and Aston Villa deal ‘imminent’
Ramsey looks set to become a Newcastle player before Villa play host to the Toon in the Premier League this weekend. Transfer news specialist Fabrizio Romano revealed last night (August 12) that an agreement was ‘almost done’ over a £40 million package and talks have rumbled into today over the payment structure.
Birmingham World understands Villa have always wanted any Ramsey bids straight up rather than instalments, so there could be some to-ing and fro-ing. Romano insists Ramsey’s move to Newcastle is ‘imminent’, though, so it’s unlikely to be long until the two teams reach a compromise.
It awaits to be seen how much of a regular starter Ramsey will become if he does seal a move to St. James’ Park as expected. The 24-year-old racked up 45 appearances for Villa across all competitions last summer, though many of those were as an impact substitute. Ramsey scored four goals and notched seven assists in those games.
West Ham and Nottingham Forest miss out
Newcastle swooping in will upset West Ham United and Nottingham Forest as the two fellow Premier League clubs had a strong interest in Ramsey. It emerged recently that both the Hammers and the Reds had made Ramsey their number one midfield transfer target, so it’s a blow to see him move to one of their rivals instead.
Villa were reluctant to let Ramsey go but couldn’t risk letting him leave for free in less than two years considering how valuable he is, especially in respect to the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR). As Ramsey’s an academy product, his sale represents pure bookable profit and will help Villa a great deal when it comes to next June’s PSR deadline.
Since making his senior debut for Villa in February 2019, in a Championship clash with local rivals West Bromwich Albion, Ramsey has scored 17 goals and provided 19 assists in 167 matches. The boyhood Villan has made just seven appearances for any other club in his career, on loan at Doncaster Rovers during the 2019/20 campaign.
It will feel strange for Villa fans to see Ramsey turning out in black and white rather than claret and blue but it’s a move that makes sense for all parties. Yes, it’s never nice to say farewell to a local lad who cares for the club so much, but £40 million is a considerable fee that helps Villa going forward. Newcastle, meanwhile, gain a very talented player.