Aston Villa forward Jhon Duran is reportedly edging closer to an exit to join West Ham Utd in a potential deal worth around £35m.
The 20-year-old joined us from Chicago Fire in January 2023, and he has since gone on to score eight goals in 49 appearances for the club.
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While he is undoubtedly a big talent with plenty of potential, question marks have been raised over his adaptability under Unai Emery and his character off the pitch amid ongoing speculation over his future for some months now.
According to Fabrizio Romano, West Ham have made more than one offer for Duran already with the latest bid worth around £35m plus a 10 percent sell-on clause, while he notes that personal terms have already been agreed between the Hammers and the Colombian international.
In turn, it remains to be seen if an agreement is reached between the two clubs on that transfer fee and the details around it, as it sounds as though Duran is on the verge of departing this summer.
Although his minutes were limited in a bit-part role as depth behind Ollie Watkins, Duran played an important role last season when Emery needed to rotate and add a different dynamic to our attacking play in the final third.
Should he leave, it will be a blow despite the fact that his impact perhaps wasn’t as positive as hoped for, but for that touted fee, it seems like a sensible decision to offload him and give Emery the funds to identify and sign a replacement who is better suited to his ideas and style of play.
As we saw last month, Villa still have to balance our books in order to stay on the right side of PSR, and so with the profit we would make on Duran, it would certainly be an astute financial decision, provided we bring in a target who can fill that void and ensure we’re not left short of firepower for the season ahead.
It will be a disappointment if Duran’s exit materialises, but while we already expect plenty of activity from Villa between now and the end of the transfer window, it’s hoped that we end the summer with a stronger squad that is capable of making us increasingly competitive and playing the style of football that Emery is continuing to implement.