Aston Villa are reportedly open to listening to offers for Diego Carlos this summer, but the intention of the club is said to be to keep hold of Jacob Ramsey.
Having capped off an excellent campaign by finishing fourth in the Premier League and securing a place in the Champions League next season, Unai Emery will undoubtedly be looking to strengthen his squad where possible to continue to ensure we’re increasingly competitive.
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Despite the invaluable financial boost that comes with qualification for Europe’s premier competition and our commercial gains off the pitch with new kit sponsorships and deals being announced, speculation over potential exits doesn’t appear to be going away.
Following on from concerns over our position in relation to PSR and FFP regulations after figures for the last financial year were published, there is a general consensus in the media that we may have to balance our books and spend sensibly in conjunction with making sales this summer.
With that in mind, according to The Telegraph, offers for Carlos are expected to be listened to, as although the 31-year-old has established himself as an important member of Emery’s squad, it’s noted that he has already attracted interest and his £100,000-a-week contract, which still has two years to run, could be proving to be problematic.
The Brazilian centre-half made 38 appearances across all competitions this past season, and so if Villa are indeed willing to sell him this summer, we will likely need to bring in a replacement to fill that void to add competition and cover for Ezri Konsa on the right side of the centre-half partnership.
Meanwhile, the report goes on to add that Ramsey has no desire to leave his boyhood club and he’s excited to return from his injury to play in the Champions League next season. However, it’s suggested that the only way that a departure would become a more serious consideration would be if Villa aren’t able to offload others.
The 22-year-old endured an injury-hit season this past year, as he was limited to just 21 appearances. Nevertheless, he showed prior to that just how important and impactful he can be for Emery, and as an Academy product with so much potential and a big future ahead of him, it’s naturally hoped that we can keep him at the club for many more years.
Time will tell if that’s possible or not, but if Villa can continue to be shrewd in the market and make astute signings to complement what we already have without having to sacrifice any of our integral players, we’ll hopefully be a stronger group by the end of the summer that is capable of building and improving upon our progress over the past 18 months.
