Aston Villa boss Unai EmeryAston Villa boss Unai Emery
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery | Getty Images
Aston Villa have the chance to bring in some new players over the next couple of months
The Midlands outfit finished outside out of the top five in the Premier League last season. Therefore, they missed out on the Champions League which was a blow. They will be hoping to get back into it in the next campaign.
Aston Villa latest regarding Fermin Lopez links
Aston Villa-linked Fermin Lopez, who is valued at around the £59million range, has no plans to leave Barcelona this summer amid additional interest from Chelsea, according to Sport, via Sport Witness. The report suggests the rumours are useful PR for the player and provide him with a chance to show his loyalty to his current club. It doesn’t appear that the will be leaving anytime soon amid the speculation.
Lopez, 22, has been with Barca since joining them back in 2016. Prior to his move, he spent time on the books of fellow La Liga outfit Real Betis. He has since risen up through the ranks at Camp Nou and was initially a key player for the B team before breaking into the first-team picture.
The Spain international, who has two caps to his name so far in his career, was loaned out to Linares in 2022 to get some experience. Upon his return, he has become a useful squad player for the senior team. He has made 88 appearances in all competitions to date and he has chipped in with 19 goals, eight of which came last term.
What now for Aston Villa?
If Lopez joined Aston Villa, he would inject more quality into their squad. If he stays put at Barcelona or joins Chelsea, Emery would need to source alternative options. They still have plenty of time to find some new players.
Villa were beaten 2-0 away at Manchester United on the final day of last season and that result meant they weren’t able to get into the Champions League which was a shame for them. Speaking afterwards, talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook said: “Aston Villa choked! Maybe there’s a lack of big game mentality, but you can’t just point to the referee for this one. Yes, the disallowed goal was a bad call, no question, but Villa had 37 games before that to secure their spot. They’ve been inconsistent at times, and when you look at the bigger picture, they didn’t do enough to guarantee Champions League football. That said, you can understand their frustration, because that decision against United was a killer blow, and it’s going to hurt their ability to push on in the transfer market and keep their best players.”
As Crook alluded to, their transfer plans may have been shifted now. That doesn’t mean they won’t be able to bring in some decent players though. Villa have shown over recent times that they can attract big names like Marcus Rashford and Marco Asencio, for example.
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