If you’re a top-flight midfielder, it would be almost an insult if you didn’t receive at least one transfer call this summer. Almost every top club chases new stars in the middle of the park, charging exorbitant fees, and Aston Villa are certainly one of them.
Youri Tielemans joins Manchester United on the midfield merry-go-round, with the Villans set to bring in Johan Manzambi and Joao Gomez in two rapid-fire signings following Amadou Onana’s ill-timed anterior cruciate ligament injury at the World Cup. But that’s not all.
Manager Unai Emery still wants another name in that department, and that’s where Joao Parinha could play that role. The Bayern Munich man seems destined to leave the German giants this summer, just as he did 12 months ago, and that’s sparking an interesting race.
Assessing Aston Villa’s potential new midfield | ||
|---|---|---|
Johan Manzambi | This is one of Aston Villa’s robberies this year. Newcastle looked set to sign Manzambi, but the Swiss international, who broke out at the World Cup, finished the tournament with three goals and two assists before the Midlands club swooped in. He will be a great addition. | 9/10 |
joan gomez | The people of Midland managed to keep the incident quiet. Again, this is an added quality. João Gomez knows the Premier League well and will replace Onana’s duties when in possession. Only two players in the Premier League last season racked up more tackles than the former Wolves man. | 7/10 |
Joan Parinha | Interestingly, Parinha was one of only two players to have more tackles than Gomez last season. As a partnership, they would be one of the best out-of-possession duos in the Premier League. But Aston Villa still have work to do before they can make Parinha theirs. | 7/10 |
A deal must be concluded and Parinha could head to the Midlands soon as Benfica cannot match Aston Villa’s finances.
Aston Villa preparing to take over Parinha officially
As reported by Portugal’s O Jogo, Aston Villa are preparing to make a formal hijack to sign Parinha ahead of Benfica this summer. The Portuguese giants are banking on the midfielder’s desire to return to his home country, but Villa are the only ones who can meet his €9 million ($780,000) annual salary request.
In terms of negotiations, the Premier League side are expected to start talks with Bayern Munich and also join Benfica in a key next step.
The German Giants loaned Parinha to the Spurs last season, but it remains to be seen whether they will aim to sell him outright this time. If that happens, Villa should have the advantage again.
Emery is already set to bring in two stars in midfield and will do everything in his power to make the Bayern man a third. He would be the perfect partner for Manzambi and Gomez.
