Diego Carlos transfer twist after Newcastle stance made clear
Aston Villa centre-back Diego Carlos is said to be closing in on a move to Turkish giants Fenerbahce after all
Fenerbahce are reportedly closing in on a deal with Aston Villa to sign defender Diego Carlos.
The Brazilian is wanted by Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho, who is desperate to sign two new centre-backs in this winter window due to injury problems in his squad. A move for Carlos was said to have fallen through at the start of the week, but appears to have now been resurrected.
The window for Turkish clubs to do their transfer business opened on Monday and Fenerbahce are now entering the final round of talks with Villa to secure Carlos, as per Fabrizio Romano.
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Turkish outlet Sports Digitale first reported that the deal was still alive, despite there being reports of Mourinho's position at Fenerbahce being under scrutiny due to Istanbul rivals, Galatasaray, being eight points ahead in the Super Lig.
Mourinho was also said to be targeting Lloyd Kelly from Newcastle, but Eddie Howe has this morning stated the importance of him to the team.
"Lloyd [Kelly] has not talked to me about leaving the football club," Howe said. "I think he's only just joined and I think there's an understanding from his perspective that he's got to earn the right to play and prove that he deserves to play ahead of other players.
"So there's been absolutely no issue. He's been great to work with and I knew he would be. He's waiting for his opportunities, so there's no issue with Lloyd at all.
"Whatever rumours you're hearing are likely from Fenerbahce and not from the player so I want to make that very clear and Lloyd's an important part of what we're doing."
Villa's Carlos hasn't featured for Villa since the 2-2 draw with Brighton, missing the last three matches. Unai Emery said he was injured for those games, but Carlos hit back on social media before the trip to Everton. On Instagram, the defender wrote: "I'm not injured".
Carlos was available for transfer back in the summer, but a move away from Villa never materialised. He is due to enter the final 12 months of his contract in the summer and will turn 32 years of age in March.
Villa have lined up Loic Bade as a replacement for Carlos, but Monchi must sell the Brazilian before he can recruit another centre-back, which was the case back in August.
