Aston Villa have reportedly secured an ‘agreement’ with Atletico Madrid for their fifth summer signing, but there is still a hurdle to overcome.
So far this summer, Aston Villa have invested around £100m to sign Johan Manzambi, Joao Gomes, Alejandro Garnacho and Modou Keba Cisse.
But with Ezri Konsa linked with an exit following the departures of Morgan Rogers and Youri Tielemans, Unai Emery‘s side still have plenty of business to do in the coming weeks.
Lucas Digne is another Aston Villa player who is set to move elsewhere this summer because he reportedly has a deal with Paris Saint-Germain, but the Premier League side need to secure a replacement before letting him go.
For a while, former Brighton star Pervis Estupinan, who currently plays for AC Milan, looked set to be Digne’s replacement, but Aston Villa have now turned to Atletico Madrid left-back Matteo Ruggeri.
The 24-year-old made 47 appearances and contributed seven assists for Atletico Madrid across all competitions last season, but the Spanish giants are open to letting him leave.
On Wednesday afternoon, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported that they are planning to use Ruggeri and another player to fund their move for Tottenham Hotspur’s Cristian Romero.
Romano explained: ‘Atlético Madrid are preparing a bid for Cristian Romero to be submitted after next sales (Molina + possibly Ruggeri).
‘Bid to be in line with Inter previous proposal; Inter had €40m package in place with Spurs but nothing done on player side.
‘Simeone wants Cuti, as @marca reports.’
Matteo Ruggeri ‘agreement’ reached but one hurdle for Aston Villa remains
A report from The Athletic on Wednesday confirmed that Aston Villa are ‘considering’ Ruggeri, who was linked with Liverpool and Tottenham last month, among several left-back options, and he has now edged closer to a move to Villa Park.
This is because Spanish journalist Ruben Uria reports that the Villans have reached an ‘agreement’ with Atletico Madrid over a deal worth 25 million euros (£21m) for Ruggeri.
Still, there is a hurdle for Aston Villa to overcome to sign him.
Uria said on X: ‘MATTEO RUGGERI. Agreement in principle between Atlético de Madrid and Aston Villa for the transfer of Ruggeri for a total package, between fixed amounts and bonuses, of 25 M€.
‘The agreement between the English club and the Italian player still needs to be finalized. It is expected that he will not travel to Korea.’
As alluded to above, Aston Villa need signings, and a few more arrivals are expected in the coming weeks.