Managing Aston Villa - Moussa Diaby transfer, £40m deal wait and turnover concern
Aston Villa are set to add Amadou Onana and Jaden Philogene to Unai Emery's squad, which will take their summer spending above £100m
Our dedicated Aston Villa reporter is always on the pulse of all things claret and blue, from major talking points to transfer news to match action, John Townley will bring you the very latest from Bodymoor Heath and Villa Park.
Aston Villa have been one of the busiest Premier League clubs in the first month of the summer transfer window as they close in on signings numbers six and seven.
Monchi and Damian Vidagany balanced the books last month so Villa remained compliant with Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), allowing themselves to pursue a primary target like Amadou Onana. The Everton midfielder is expected to join Villa in a deal worth around £50m.
Jaden Philogene is also due to be confirmed as the club's sixth signing after he completed a medical at Bodymoor Heath on Monday ahead of his £18m move back to Villa. Because Villa have a 30 per cent sell-on clause, they are essentially only paying £13m for the winger.
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Moussa Diaby's future
Philogene's return to Villa has thrown Moussa Diaby's future into doubt considering he has serious interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia. Al-Ittihad are known to be keen on signing Diaby, who only joined Villa 12 months ago from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth around £34m plus add-ons.
Diaby made a total of 54 appearances across his maiden campaign for Villa, recording 19 goal contributions as he scored 10 and assisted nine. He was involved in five goals in his first nine Premier League games, but after bursting on the scene, Diaby didn't replicate his early season form.
But that's to be expected from a player who is new to the Premier League. After all, it took Leon Bailey two seasons to adjust to the English top-flight and he is now one of the best wingers in the division.
Villa will not want to sell a talent like Diaby so soon after he has joined the club, but if a huge offer is made, then they could reluctantly sell considering what that money could do in the long run. Forced to sell a key player in Douglas Luiz at the start of the summer window, that's not a position Villa would want to be in again next June, while Diaby wouldn't be heading to a rival either.
Villa are about to add £68m to their transfer spend, taking their total to around £130m. They have sold around £70m, but if Diaby was to leave too, it would almost certainly cover their summer spending so far.
Striker headache
While Villa have little room in their squad to keep adding players, if Diaby was to leave, then Philogene would likely be his replacement. The 22-year-old will have been given assurances over his game time as he essentially handed in a transfer request last summer because he wanted guaranteed minutes.
After Onana and Philogene sign on, anyone who comes into Emery's squad will likely replace an outgoing player because of the current squad size. Jhon Duran is likely to move on this summer given interest in him from West Ham, AC Milan and elsewhere, but the club are being made to wait to cash in after Chelsea's move stalled and there has been no progress on a move to the Hammers just yet.
Villa value Duran at £40m, which is a fair price for a striker whose potential is huge. If he were to leave, then Villa will have a plan of how to replace him, which will be crucial.
Even though he has only started three Premier League games in 18 months, Villa will have a void to fill in their squad if Duran leaves this summer. While he hasn't been prolific across the 49 games he has played for Villa across all competitions, he gave Emery another option from off the bench.
The Colombia international puts himself about well and has all the physical attributes to shine in the Premier League despite his young age. Villa should target a forward who can impact games coming into a match by holding the ball up and occupying defenders - basically, offer something that Villa don't already have in their squad.
Read about who our writers think Villa should sign to replace Duran.
High turnover concern
Back in May, Emery suggested that Villa would only be adding a few players to his squad, as he said: "We must arrange at the beginning the fair play and through that to try and be intelligent to try and build a new team. More or less we are not thinking to add or sign a lot of players.
"We are trying to be intelligent, how we can improve the squad with some players. Of course, we are going to be very demanding in getting the best possible to improve the squad. But we have to work now, deeply analysing it."
He added: "Financially, being in the Champions League is better than not. Our budget could be better, but we have to manage at the beginning the fair play for this season, then we can build. I think we can be intelligent and build a strong team to compete in the Champions League, the Premier League and the cups."
The window hasn't been a quiet one so far and Villa will remain busy in the weeks to come in the lead up to the new season with players leaving and joining the squad.
Monchi and Vidagany have performed a top job so far in this window in dealing with the loss of Luiz and pressures from PSR. However, the high turnover of players could be a concern for some fans, with Diaby possibly on the way out after Luiz.
There will likely be about four new signings on the pitch against West Ham on the opening day, but Villa are doing the bulk of their business before pre-season starts, allowing plenty of time for new arrivals to bed in.
What business must Villa complete before the deadline? Have your say below
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