The 10 most ridiculous transfer swoops Aston Villa so nearly pulled off

Aston Villa have made a number of high-profile signings throughout their history, with Paul McGrath, Dwight Yorke, Juan Pablo Angel, Philippe Coutinho and Emiliano Martinez among the most famous additions to have graced the turf at Villa Park.

Given their reputation and establishment as a consistent Premier League outfit, Villa have attracted their fair share of renowned superstars from around the globe, but not every deal has been concluded.

Following on from the summer transfer window, which saw hundreds of rumours circulating online and a seemingly countless list of players linked with the club, BirminghamWorld has been looking back in time at some of the most incredible moves that weren’t quite pulled off.

The 10 most insane transfers Aston Villa nearly pulled off

Without further ado, here are 10 players who were on the verge of joining Villa but failed to put pen to paper - and the reasons the transfers never reached a conclusion.

Roberto Carlos (Palmeiras to Aston Villa, 1995)

Former Villa chairman Doug Ellis wrote in his 1998 autobiography that the Villans were very close to signing the legendary Brazilian left-back after a Brazil vs Sweden friendly at Villa Park. Head coach Brian Little wasn’t enthusiastic about the deal, though, and pulled out.

Andy Cole (Bristol City to Aston Villa, 1993)

Another claim from Ellis’ autobiography was that an agreement was in place to sign Cole when he was at Bristol City. It was all done but Ellis needed the go-ahead from manager Ron Atkinson. Phone calls were made to the training ground, stadium, Atkinson’s home and even mobile, but he didn’t pick up. Newcastle United then swooped in and signed Cole under Villa’s noses.

Frank Lampard (West Ham United to Aston Villa, 2001)

Everyone knows ‘Super Frank’ as a Chelsea legend but he nearly didn’t go there at all, as Villa were in the fight to sign him from West Ham back in 2001. The Villans bid £7.5 million but Chelsea pitched £11 million. John Gregory was keen to match this but it took up too much of the budget.

Radamel Falcao (River Plate to Aston Villa, 2008)

The Mirror reported Falcao was being heavily tipped for a move to Villa Park when he was valued at just £5-6 million. This was judged too much for the player, however, who was at Argentine top-tier club River Plate at the time.

Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid to Aston Villa, 2023 and 2024)

The most recent of these crazy transfer sagas, Villa were twice favourites to land Felix to end his disaster in Madrid. On both occasions, however, Chelsea swooped in - with the Blues at first signing the attacker on loan before eventually bringing him in permanently.

Wesley Sneijder (Inter Milan to Aston Villa, 2009)

Looking to sign one of the best midfielders in the world at the time, Martin O’Neill was a huge fan of Sneijder and publicly made it clear he wanted to sign him. Although it was totally unrealistic, Villa were genuinely favourites at one stage when Inter Milan stalled with Real Madrid over the fee.

Robbie Keane (Wolverhampton Wanderers to Aston Villa, 1999)

Although the Irishman did eventually play for Villa later in his career, there was an attempt to sign him as a youngster when he was at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Around £6 million was offered but Wolves were holding out for £6.5 million, so manager John Gregory pulled the plug.

Abel Hernandez (Hull City to Aston Villa, 2016)

It looked as if the Uruguayan would be making a huge £20 million to help Villa get promoted back to the Premier League, but the deal was cancelled when he asked for a rise to £100,000-a-week if promotion did occur. 

Juninho (Atletico Madrid to Aston Villa, 1999)

Becoming out of favour at Atletico Madrid, the Brazilian, who played for Middlesbrough earlier in his career, wanted a Premier League return. The Guardian claimed at the time that Juninho was closing on a move to Villa after a £10 million fee was agreed, but it never materialised as he went back to Boro on loan instead.

Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham Hotspur to Aston Villa, 2015)

Another of those oh-so nears, Adebayor was so close to joining Villa that he had a medical and was the subject of promotional photographs. The loan deal fell through at the very last moment, however, after the Togolese striker sought advice from his pastor. He wasn’t convinced that God wanted him to join the club.