Aston Villa are reportedly advancing in talks over the signing of Everton winger Lewis Dobbin, as Tim Iroegbunam is set to move in the opposite direction to join the Toffees.
Speculation has been rife this month as Villa look to do business to ultimately strengthen Unai Emery’s squad by the end of the summer transfer window.
READ MORE: Touted tweak to swap deal as Villa look for solution to find agreement
Amid ongoing PSR concerns though, the focus over the last fortnight or so has seemingly been on selling players in order to balance our books, after which the expectation is that we’ll sign reinforcements and improve where possible.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Iroegbunam is all set to secure a move to Everton for around £9m, thus giving Villa an important injection of profit off his sale to help with our financial situation as we look to avoid breaching PSR parameters and not risk a sanction.
While it’s a shame to lose a top prospect in the 20-year-old midfielder, it’s a decision that Emery would ultimately have signed off on, and so it appears as though we’re looking to rebuild our midfield this summer given the likelihood that Douglas Luiz leaves too.
However, Romano adds that Villa are likely to return the favour to Everton by signing Dobbin, as he reports that talks are advancing and we may well bolster our attacking options and add further depth imminently.
Dobbin, 21, made 15 appearances at senior level for Everton last season as he scored his first Premier League goal to build on his loan spell at Derby in the previous campaign.
Albeit a promising talent with plenty of development to come, he’s a young player that Emery may well relish working with and improving to become a key member of his squad, and so hopefully the double deal works out for all concerned, both financially and from a sporting perspective.
As noted above, the feeling is that Villa will make significant signings this summer once we have addressed our PSR concerns, with Chelsea left-back Ian Maatsen heavily linked while both Enzo Barrenechea and Samuel Iling Jr could arrive in the Luiz deal with Juventus, but there could yet be more outgoings too in order to maintain that balance with our spending.