Aston Villa have confirmed that Keinan Davis has joined Udinese in a permanent move for an undisclosed fee.
The 25-year-old joined the club in 2015, and went on to make 85 appearances at senior level, scoring six goals and providing seven assists.
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Loan stints with Watford and Nottingham Forest have followed in recent years, and with his involvement at Villa going from limited to non-existent, an exit had been expected for some time.
As per the club’s statement, Davis has now made the switch to Italy, and ultimately it’s the ideal outcome for all concerned given he has not been involved under Unai Emery since he took charge.
While Davis gets a fresh opportunity to become a key figure for Udinese, Villa move him on and free up additional resources by offloading a dispensable player from the wage bill.
Further, with his contract set to expire next summer, the club have done well to get a fee for him, even if nominal, as it ultimately avoids a scenario where we lose him for nothing next year.
According to the Athletic, Udinese will pay £2m plus add-ons for Davis, while we’re said to also have a sell-on clause worth between 15 and 20 percent included in the agreement as Monchi’s influence on our transfer dealings continues to be seen with smart details to each deal.
It’s been a busy summer for Villa with five signings made, while we’ve seen a number of players leave the club too as Emery continues to mould the squad into his own, while we seemingly create financial flexibility moving forward as well to continue to strengthen.
The likes of Aaron Ramsey and Cameron Archer have also departed in this transfer window as Villa have moved on a few of our youth products, but it’s hoped that this move works out for Davis not only for his own personal ambition and progression, but also now given we could benefit from a big move further down the line with that touted sell-on clause.
