Aston Villa are closely monitoring Parma midfielder Mandela Keita ahead of the summer, according to reports in Italy.
The West Midlands club are believed to be among a host of sides keeping tabs on the 23-year-old Belgium international, along with fellow Premier League clubs Tottenham and Brighton.
Serie A side Bologna are also interested in Keita and reportedly view him as a replacement for Swiss midfielder Remo Freuler, whose contract is expiring at the end of the season.
Any deal for Keita is unlikely to come cheaply, with Parma looking to generate a substantial profit on the Belgian, who joined the club in 2024 for around €12m.
Aston Villa Monitoring Parma’s Mandela Keita
Mandela Keita
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, via TuttoBolognaWeb, Keita has no shortage of suitors in England amid his impressive development at Parma.
The 23-year-old midfielder has been a key player for the Serie A outfit this season, starting 28 of 30 games and registering one assist in over 2,300 minutes of action.
Keita developed at OH Leuven’s academy before making a move to fellow Belgian club Royal Antwerp in 2023, where he spent almost 18 months on loan.
The 23-year-old, praised as a ‘possession-winning machine’, saw his move to Antwerp made permanent in the summer of 2024 but ended up joining Parma two months later.
During his time at Antwerp, Keita made his Champions League debut in the 2023-24 campaign and was part of the squad that surprisingly beat Barcelona 3-2 in the group stage.
Keita won his only senior cap for Belgium in October 2023, when he came off the bench in the 3-2 win over Austria. The 23-year-old received his last national call-up in June 2024.
Morgan Rogers Admired by Liverpool
Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers celebrates scoring vs Manchester United
Aston Villa could face a serious battle to keep hold of Morgan Rogers this summer, with the forward attracting interest from Liverpool ahead of the transfer window.
According to GIVEMESPORT senior correspondent Ben Jacobs, Liverpool are admirers of the 23-year-old forward as they outline plans to bring in a new creative attacker.
Rogers has arguably been Villa’s best player this season, scoring eight goals and providing five assists in 31 league appearances.
The England international only signed a new six-year contract in November, keeping him at Villa until 2031.
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The Serie A club are set to hold talks.