Over the past two years, midfielder Leander Dendoncker left Aston Villa on loan in consecutive seasons (to Napoli and Anderlecht, respectively), but the Belgium international is now leaving Birmingham on a permanent basis as he will begin the 2025-26 season as part of Spanish side Real Oviedo.
According to Jacob Tanswell of The Athletic, Dendoncker will join the La Liga club for an undisclosed fee after an offseason spent training separately from the Villa first-team squad. Dendoncker’s transfer comes after the club spent the majority of the summer transfer window looking for a suitable destination for the 30-year-old midfielder.
On Tuesday, Dendoncker underwent a medical evaluation in Spain to help push his transfer over the table, and all signs point to a Dendoncker relocation to Real Oviedo before Villa’s upcoming match against Brentford on Saturday, Aug. 23.
Now, Dendoncker was excluded from the Aston Villa squad for its Premier League opener against Newcastle last weekend, but this move finally secures Dendoncker’s future, one with a healthy portion of minutes in his future. Last season, Real Oviedo secured promotion to Spain’s top tier after winning the promotion playoffs, and Dendoncker will provide a valuable dose of experience to the team.
During Dendoncker’s three-year spell in Aston Villa’s organization, the right-footed holding midfielder featured in 35 matches for the Claret and Blue, though much of his playing time was doled out in the Steven Gerrard era. But since manager Unai Emery took the helm, Dendoncker has not worked his way into Emery’s plans. Instead, Dendoncker has occupied a high weekly wage bill at €90,000 weekly according to FBRef.com.
How does Dendoncker’s transfer impact Aston Villa?
With Dendoncker’s salary off Villa’s books, the club inches closer to operating in the transfer market without restrictions but has not reached that threshold yet. Additionally, Villa loaned out Leon Bailey to AS Roma and sold Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle within the past week, so Villa is active to clear out its wages as quickly as possible.
Assuredly, Villa should enjoy a bit more breathing room in its financial department as a result of this move. The West Midlands club was recently fined €11 million for its squad cost ratio exceeding the desired UEFA-mandated mark, so Dendoncker’s departure will help shore up Villa’s books in any event.