Aston Villa are reportedly waiting on RB Leipzig to make a decision on whether or not they will exercise their option to buy on Kosta Nedeljkovic.
The 19-year-old joined Villa in January 2024 before being loaned back to Red Star Belgrade for the remainder of the campaign.
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Despite impressing in pre-season last summer, he played a limited role for Unai Emery to start the season last year, and subsequently he was loaned out to RB Leipzig in January in a bid to land a more prominent role and gain experience to further develop his all-round game.
An option to buy was included in that loan agreement, but according to Sky Sport Germany’s Philipp Hinze, Leipzig are weighing the situation up at this stage as it’s unclear if they will trigger their option to sign Nedeljkovic on a permanent basis for €10.5m, but they do have until next month to reach a conclusion.
It’s added that their failure to qualify for the Champions League might force changes to their transfer plans this summer, and although the Serbian international is highly thought of, it remains unclear if he will join the Bundesliga side on a permanent basis this summer.
Given Emery had several months to work with Nedeljkovic in training at Bodymoor Heath and evidently wasn’t convinced enough to give him significant minutes, having made just 10 appearances for the club while totalling 348 minutes of playing time, it indicates that the Villa boss wasn’t able to find the level of trust needed in him to feature more regularly, and so it could be a struggle for the talented youngster to gain a second chance.
Particularly with the signing of Andres Garcia in January to add further competition for places and with a decision needed on Kaine Kesler-Hayden’s future this summer too, it remains to be seen what our options at right-back look like when we start the new campaign in August.
There is still a sense that Nedeljkovic hasn’t been given sufficient time or opportunities to really showcase his talent and potential, and so it’s hoped that he does return to Villa later this summer and has an opportunity in pre-season to once again change Emery’s mind.
However, with Villa under pressure to sort out our financial position ahead of June 30 due to PSR concerns, it might become a more pressing matter in the next month or so, and if a fee of €10.5m is agreed, that could prove to be a useful level of income depending on our other business that helps us avoid breaching any rules.
That said, with the need to significantly reduce our wage bill too to comply with UEFA’s financial rules, there may well be a focus on our talented younger players being given more responsibility and some of the senior players moving on, and so it’s not just Leipzig who have big decisions to make this summer on how best to attack the transfer market.
