Aston Villa are reportedly edging closer to completing the signing of Ian Maatsen from Chelsea, as he’ll undergo a medical this weekend.
The 22-year-old impressed on loan at Borussia Dortmund in the second half of last season, scoring three goals and providing two assists in 23 appearances to go with his defensive contribution.
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Having joined Chelsea in 2018, it was the latest in a long list of loan stints elsewhere, but it looks as though the next chapter of his career will take him to Villa, where he’ll hopefully have an important impact under Unai Emery.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Maatsen will undergo a medical at the Netherlands camp this weekend ahead of his £37.5m move to Villa, with the final details of his contract also set to be finalised.
In turn, it’s hoped that the deal can be concluded imminently, as we look to add our first major reinforcement this summer to bolster Emery’s squad.
It will have an interesting knock-on effect though, as with Lucas Digne and Alex Moreno already vying for a starting berth at left-back, the arrival of Maatsen will surely mean that one of that duo will move on this summer.
Time will tell who that is, but as far as the Dutch defender is concerned, he’s a vital addition to the Villa squad, as he’ll hopefully provide Emery with the ideal influence from left-back on a consistent basis with his speed, athleticism and technical ability.
Maatsen appears to be an ideal fit for what the Villa boss is trying to build and the style of play he’s implementing, and given Moreno’s problems with injury last season coupled with Digne’s high wages and perhaps not being able to provide the impact wanted in both phases of the game on a consistent basis, it looks to be a long-term upgrade for Villa in that position.
It’s been a busy week for the club, with most of our activity linked with players leaving as the likes of Douglas Luiz and Omari Kellyman are expected to be on their way out to follow Tim Iroegbunam as Villa look to balance the books and ease our PSR concerns.
However, the hope is that Maatsen is the first of several significant signings this summer off the back of those moves to give us more flexibility, to ensure that Emery’s squad is stronger at the end of the transfer window than compared to what it was at the start of the summer.
