Aston Villa are reportedly close to agreeing terms with Luton Town for the permanent transfer of midfielder Marvelous Nakamba.
The 29-year-old joined us from Club Brugge in August 2019 and has since gone on to make 68 appearances for the club.
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However, after spending the second half of last season on loan at Luton to successfully help them secure promotion to the Premier League, coupled with Unai Emery bringing in midfield reinforcements to stamp his mark on the squad, Nakamba’s future at the club has become increasingly doubtful.
According to the Telegraph’s Mike McGrath, Villa and Luton are now close to reaching an agreement on a deal that will see Nakamba move back to Kenilworth Road in a permanent transfer, and the move could be completed in the next 48 hours.
Should it now materialise as expected, it’s a move that suits all concerned. With Youri Tielemans arriving this summer to strengthen what is already a solid selection of midfielders at Emery’s disposal, Nakamba would have fallen further down the pecking order with no real chance of featuring for us in the upcoming campaign.
In turn, he gets an opportunity to play a more prominent role, and Luton get back a player who played an important part in helping them secure top-flight football this season.
Further, with his current Villa contract set to expire next summer, this is the ideal time for us to move him on and hopefully receive a decent fee, rather than lose him for nothing or loan him out again until his deal ran down.
While he was always fully committed for us and was seemingly highly thought of in the Villa dressing room, we’re ultimately looking for more now as Emery looks to build on the success and progress of last season.
The Spanish tactician will have his own ideas and players who are a better fit for his style and system, and so should Nakamba depart this week as suggested in the report above, we’ll wish him well and hope that it’s a deal that all parties are pleased with.