There is a good degree of optimism that Aston Villa will be able to sign Marco Asensio from Fenerbahçe. Lucas Paqueta is an additional name that keeps coming up as someone who the club could add to the roster.
Foot Mercato's Santi Aouna has reported that Villa are indeed in talks for Paqueta. The post also shared that the Brazil international is not expected to travel with the West Ham squad when the Hammers travel to Nottingham Forest on Sunday. This tends to indicate that a move is close to being sealed for Paqueta's departure one way or another.
It appears that the main sticking point that is preventing Paqueta's arrival to B6 is that of the type of deal that is being pursued by both sides. West Ham are looking for a permanent move. Villa are hopeful of being able to add the midfielder on loan for the 2025 campaign with an obligation to buy later on.
Room for Aston Villa to add Paqueta
In any event, Villa have freed up the ability for their being able to add a player or two more to the roster. Toward the beginning of the transfer window, something was not possible, as the club was forced to comply with the financial agreements set forth by UEFA. Since then, however, Villa have sold players and now have the needed wiggle room to be able to engage in some transfer activity. As can be told by Villa's desire to engage in a loan deal, having flexibility moving forward is still an aspect that the club continues to actively consider.
There are other suitors for Paqueta, though. Aouna shared that an offer from Tottenham Hotspur had been recently rejected. This does show that there is a lot of interest and late competition for Paqueta. If Villa are going to secure the Brazilian, they may need to end up agreeing to a permanent deal, although it is against their initial wishes.