Aston Villa are reportedly interested in signing Celta Vigo defender Oscar Mingueza, as we look to bolster Unai Emery’s defensive options.
The Villa boss spoke last week about our transfer plans in the January transfer window, and while he suggested that Kosta Nedeljkovic could head out on loan for the rest of the season, it was heavily hinted that bringing in a versatile new right-back is on our agenda.
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That in turn would give us competition for Matty Cash in that position, and hopefully allow Ezri Konsa to be deployed predominantly as a centre-half, his more natural and effective role.
According to Marcos Benito of El Chiringuito TV, Villa are showing interest in Mingueza, and so it remains to be seen if the Spaniard emerges as our preferred option to address that particular area of the squad.
The 25-year-old joined Celta from Barcelona in 2022 having come through the youth ranks with the Catalan giants, and he has since gone on to make 82 appearances for the club, scoring four goals and providing eight assists to go with his defensive work.
Further, while his main position is a right-back, Mingueza has the ability to play in the middle and in a more advanced role on the right side, and so that could tick another important box for Emery.
It’s still early in the month and so the expectation is that Villa will be linked with a whole host of names as we look to strengthen Emery’s squad, but this is an intriguing link as it comes after his comments about that being a position we’re looking to do something in.
The report above doesn’t suggest that it has developed beyond interest just yet and so time will tell if we submit an offer, but it’s also worth noting that Mingueza’s current contract with Celta runs until June 2026, and so a decision on his future is likely to be needed before he moves ever closer to entering the final 12 months of his deal.
