Aston Villa have been linked with a move for Fenerbahce defender Attila Szalai this summer, but Fenerbahce president Ali Koc has revealed his valuation.
As per Birmingham Live, Villa are said to hold an interest in Szalai, who has been busy impressing at Euro 2020 this summer prior to Hungary’s elimination from the tournament.
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Having seen Bjorn Engels leave the club this summer, Villa have a void to fill in the squad as Dean Smith will undoubtedly need more depth at centre-half given Kortney Hause is currently his only senior option behind first-choice pairing Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa.
As we look to push on and compete for a top-six finish in the Premier League this coming season, that surely isn’t enough depth as injuries could certainly create a real problem for the Villa boss.
In turn, that’s where the link with Szalai arguably makes sense, but Koc has insisted that he will not accept anything less than €20m for his prized asset.
“For Attila, under €20m is not even talked about,” Fenerbahce president Ali Koc is quoted as saying by Turkish media outlet Hurriyet.
The 23-year-old is coming off the back of a solid campaign last year with the Turkish giants, making 41 appearances across all competitions as he also contributed six goals and three assists in addition to his defensive work.
At this stage, it’s unclear how much Villa are wanting to spend on a new centre-half to replace Engels, but with other areas to address too, it seems unlikely that they will be willing to spend a big portion of their budget on Szalai.
Time will tell if the situation changes though as the summer transfer window unfolds, with Smith needing depth at centre-half, full-back and in midfield if we wish to challenge next season and beyond with Neil Taylor, Ahmed Elmohamady and Ross Barkley all leaving following the end of the last campaign.