Talks touted as Villa paired with trying to sign classy ace permanently

Aston Villa are reportedly in talks with Paris Saint-Germain over the possibility of signing Marco Asensio on a permanent basis.

The 29-year-old arrived on loan in January and provided Unai Emery with a crucial boost for the second half of the season by giving us a different dynamic in the final third.

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Asensio ended his temporary spell with us with eight goals and one assist in 21 appearances across all competitions, although many of those goals came in the early part of his loan stint.

Having cooled off as the season came to an end, question marks were raised over whether or not Villa would try to sign him outright, with doubts continuing to build especially after our failure to qualify for the Champions League.

Villa are said to be under pressure to sell players this summer to remain compliant with PSR and our wage bill needs to be reduced to comply with UEFA’s financial rules, and so it seems the priority for now will be on outgoings before we can start spending money on reinforcements.

According to BirminghamWorld reporter Charlie Haffenden though, Villa wish to sign Asensio on a permanent basis and the club is said to be in talks with PSG to try to reach a deal. Further, it’s added that the Spaniard isn’t put off by our lack of Champions League football next season.

Given his technical quality, creativity, experience and winning track record, Asensio would bring a number of important qualities and traits to the squad if he were to stay on, particularly with Villa not only looking to break back into the top five in the Premier League, but also Europa League glory next year.

However, Asensio’s drop off in the final third as his loan stint went on can’t be ignored, and neither can the knock-on effect his presence in the starting line-up as Villa’s No.10 can have in forcing Morgan Rogers into wide roles where is less effective.

Unai Emery will know better than anyone what he needs to be successful at Villa and he will want competition for places, depth and players that give him different tactical solutions for different challenges posed by the opposition.

Asensio can be the key to unlocking a stubborn defence or giving us control in advanced areas to build sustained pressure and find a breakthrough, and so if Emery feels we lack that in other options, it remains to be seen if we do indeed make a serious run at trying to bring the Spanish playmaker back permanently this summer.

Still, it’s felt that much will depend on whether or not we can afford his transfer fee and still give ourselves plenty of room to add more reinforcements, while his wage demands could be a crucial stumbling block too given our financial predicament.

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