Sporting are reportedly looking to buy an additional 40 percent in the rights of Pedro Goncalves, who has been linked with a transfer to Aston Villa this summer.
According to A Bola over the weekend, Villa have made an approach to the Portuguese giants to understand the conditions they would demand for a transfer to materialise.
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It was suggested that they want the 24-year-old’s €80m release clause to be met to green light an exit, but ultimately Villa would surely want to negotiate that down as much as possible to pay what we would consider a more reasonable fee.
Goncalves enjoyed another productive campaign this past year, scoring 20 goals and providing 15 assists in 51 appearances across all competitions, and so it’s clear why Villa would be keen on bringing him to the club this summer.
While Emiliano Buendia was heavily relied upon to provide creativity and a playmaking link between the midfield and Ollie Watkins last season, Philippe Coutinho’s injury troubles and Leon Bailey’s inconsistency left us with a lack of alternative options. In turn, addressing that issue in the squad could be a priority for Emery this summer.
However, Record now report that Sporting are in negotiations with Famalicao – Goncalves’ former club – to acquire a further 40 percent of his rights for a fee of €8m, to add to the 50 percent they already own.
That would of course then leave them with a 90 percent overall share in the Portuguese international, and so on one hand it could complicate our hopes of signing him as ultimately Sporting are reinforcing their position over his future.
Conversely, it could make talks this summer less complicated, as negotiations between the two clubs could be made more straight-forward with Famalicao only holding 10% of the player’s rights, while Sporting could still secure a significant profit if they only spend €8m to buy that touted 40 percent share.
Whether it’s a strategy to prepare themselves for an upcoming sale, or to strengthen their position to fend off any interested club or to demand they meet his release clause, remains to be seen, but the ongoing developing nature of the situation will no doubt be closely monitored by Villa with a view of a potential offer in the coming weeks.