Aston Villa aiming to raise over £200 million through player sales

Aston Villa have been very busy already this summer with regards to the transfer window, and having seen Douglas Luiz, Omari Kellyman, Calum Chambers and Tim Iroegbunam leave already the club have made over £70 million already.

Douglas Luiz left for a fee of £42 million with two Juventus players coming the other way in a separate deal to help raise the funds needed to comply with the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules. Omari Kellyman heading to Chelsea for a fee of £19 million was a shock to many, whilst Iroegbunam got his permanent move to Everton for a fee of up to £13 million. Chambers has left the club to join Championship side Cardiff City for a small fee. Meanwhile Philippe Coutinho has joined Vasco de Gama on a season-long loan with it looking likely the Brazilian club will be paying the entirety of his wages.

It is expected that there will be quite a few more heading for the exit door as Villa aim to generate another £130 million in player sales. Villa are close to formally announcing the signings of both Jaden Philogene from Hull City and Amadou Onana from Everton for £13 million and £50 million respectively.

Unai Emery and Monchi are being praised enormously for the hard work they have put in so far this summer as they look to add a greater quality of depth in the squad. Villa's form took a dip towards the end of last season due to lots of injuries and the squad lacked depth and quality of depth to replace those injured players. Now, Emery is building a better all-round squad ahead of an exciting Champions League season. Villa finished fourth to qualify for the elite European club competition for the first time in 41 years. It's shaping up as another interesting window for the club, who will remain busy until it close at the end of August.

Who else are Villa likely to try to sell? It is well-known that the club are hoping offers will come in for Diego Carlos. The Brazilian centre-half, aged 31, joined from Sevilla two years ago after being signed by Steven Gerrard. The deal at the time was in the region of £26 million and that came with high wages so Villa are keen to get a deal to move him on. His performances have not reached the heights that were expected when he signed, minus the two Arsenal games last season, and so Villa will be looking to upgrade. Villa will be hoping to bring in a fee of £20 million for the man with one year left on his current deal.

Leander Dendoncker is another player Villa will be desperate to get off their books this summer. Following his loan spell in Italy last season, Napoli chose not to take up the option to sign the 29-year-old which was hardly a surprise after only accumulating 21 minutes of game time from his four months at the club. Villa are highly unlikely to recoup all of the £13 million they spent on him in 2022 but are hoping a club will make an offer in the region of £8 million for his services.

Moussa Diaby is a high-profile name that is on the cusp of leaving the club. It is being widely reported and believed to have a lot of momentum behind it that Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia are in negotiations to sign the French winger. Villa splashed the cash last season on Diaby and produced very good numbers in his first season despite the player having an underwhelming second half of the season in terms of level of performance. Diaby joined Villa from Bayer Leverkusen last season for a fee of £34 million (plus add-ons) and it is thought the club will let him go if they can make significant profit. It is understood that Al-Ittihad, where Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante play, will make an offer of £60 million which could be enough to see him leave the club.

Jhon Duran is another player that is highly likely to leave th club this summer and will most likely be for a big fee. Chelsea held a strong interest in the player, and vice-versa, but their interest faded and it was then reported that West Ham had made a £35 million bid for the Colombian forward. However, there have been a lack of developments in the negotiations and AC Milan are now believed to be wanting to hijack that move and take him to Serie A. Villa will be hoping to receive a fee in the region of £40 million which would mark significant profit in the books after signing Duran last January for £18 million.

Other players Villa will listen to offers for are left-back's Lucas Digne and Alex Moreno. Having signed Ian Maatsen from Chelsea and Samuel Iling-Junior from Juventus it is looking increasingly likely that neither Digne or Moreno will be making the starting XI. Digne was signed by Steven Gerrard for £25 million in January 2022 and the player is one of the highest earners at the club with a salary believed to be in the region of £125,000 a week. At the age of 30 and on such high wages the club will be happy to see Digne leave the club despite his excellent form last season in Moreno's absence through injury. Moreno struggled last season with his injury problems and in the end was second choice behind Digne when both were fit to play. It is understood that the Spanish full-back is keen on a move back to Spain and with two-years left on his current deal Villa will be hoping to make back most of the £13 million Emery spent on him in January 2023.

Finally, Cameron Archer last week returned to the club following Sheffield United's relegation to the Championship. Archer scored 4 goals last season but wasn't enough to keep the club up and under the terms of the original deal that saw Archer sign for the Blades, Archer has returned. Villa will be keen to move Archer on however and are likely to hold out for a fee in the region of £12-15 million.

Keep your eyes peeled, Villans!

UTV