Aston Villa look set to complete a £5 million deal for a player compared to Diego Maradona for his performances last season.
It now looks as though Aston Villa are set to avoid breaching Premier League spending rules as the sales of Tim Iroegbunam, Omari Kellyman and Douglas Luiz should see them raise enough funds prior to the 30th June PSR deadline.
This is good news for the club, with Unai Emery‘s attention now able to shift to signing players who will improve the squad ready for a crack at the Champions League next season.
Numerous names have been linked, with the likes of Denzel Dumfries, Maximilian Beier and Conor Gallagher all high-profile targets.
However, Villa look set to wrap up a £5 million deal for a less glamorous signing who could prove to be an inspired addition in Ross Barkley.
Aston Villa target Ross Barkley’s performances compared to Diego Maradona
A deal that will see Barkley return to where he spent the 2020/21 season on loan is close, with Emery a huge factor in securing the signing.
Barkley underwent a career revival at Luton Town last season and stood out on a regular basis despite his side’s relegation.
Playing in a deeper role than we have become accustomed to seeing him in, Barkley dictated the tempo for Luton and will go some way to replacing the outgoing Luiz.
Barkley’s teammate at Luton, Andros Townsend, waxed lyrical about the 30-year-old in December following inspired performances against Arsenal and Manchester City.
Townsend said on talkSPORT: “Honestly, they’ve been some of the best midfield performances I’ve seen in my career.
“It’s just unbelievable – the calmness, the ability to get the ball off the back four and knock it past some of the world’s best midfielders without a care in the world.
“We saw yesterday against Manchester City, Maradona was in the midfield to set up our goal – honestly, it’s been a joy to watch.”
Barkley and Enzo Barrenechea can replace Douglas Luiz
Barkley may be joining for a cut-price fee at £5 million but that does not mean he will not be a very good addition.
The Englishman will not be alone in the task of replacing Luiz at the heart of Villa’s midfield either, with Juventus set to send holding midfielder Enzo Barrenechea to Villa Park as part of the deal for Luiz.
Between Barkley and Barrenechea, Villa should have two players very capable of stepping into Luiz’ shoes and, given Barkley’s previous experience playing more advanced, the pair could compliment each other well.
Therefore, the combined impact of Barkley and Barrenechea could see Villa fans soon forget all about Luiz.
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