Aston Villa are reportedly already planning a big next transfer move following a productive summer window.
What’s the latest Aston Villa transfer news?
Villa Park owners NSWE promised to back Unai Emery with a ‘huge’ transfer budget ahead of the Spaniard’s first full season in charge and lived up to their word.
In total, the club brought in five new players, two of which commanded huge fees. Defender Pau Torres arrived from Villarreal at a cost of £33m, whereas winger Moussa Diaby set the club back a record £51.9m.
The Frenchman has already shown why Villa were willing to spend big on his services, contributing to three goals in the first four Premier League games.
Emery clearly has big plans at Villa as well, with the manager recently saying the dream is to qualify for the Champions League.
"Defensively, we were very strong last year. We need to keep doing the same and then improve things with the ball. I think we can do it. We achieved seventh position in the Premier League. We are going to fight for that as a minimum."
"The present and the future for me is to try to play Champions League with Aston Villa. That is my dream. And then try to have options for a trophy is another challenge. My challenge here is to win a minimum of one trophy."
Despite a fairly big outlay in recent months, it looks as if plans are being put in place for 2024, with a new target emerging on the radar in the Midlands.
According to reports from Italy, relayed by Sport Witness, Aston Villa are interested in signing Atletico Madrid defender Nahuel Molina.
Juventus, Arsenal and Manchester City are also keen on the player's services, but it is Villa and NSWE who are thought to be ‘ready to make a very high offer’ for him.
Who is Nahuel Molina?
Molina is a right-back who can also play further forward if needed and appears to be at the top of his game with a career-high €35m Transfermarkt valuation, a figure which has almost doubled over the past 12 months.
The 25-year-old, hailed for an "incredible" World Cup campaign in Qatar last year by journalist Josh Bunting, spent the early stages of his career in his native Argentina before moving to Italy to sign for Udinese in 2020.
The World Cup winner went on to make 68 appearances for the Serie A side, contributing to 20 goals which led to a move to Atletico Madrid. He has gone on to feature on 44 occasions for his current employers, scoring on his first La Liga appearance of the 2023/24 season.
At this moment in time, Villa and Emery have Matty Cash and Calum Chambers as senior right-back options, whereas youngster Kaine Kesler-Hayden is currently on loan with Championship side Plymouth Argyle, so it will be interesting to see if Molina is viewed as an upgrade on Cash or Chambers, making this one to keep an eye on over the coming months.
