FC Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet will sign with Premier League Aston Villa on loan for the 2023/24 season. It’s expected that Aston Villa will cover 75% of his salary with Barcelona covering the other 25%.
This is a perfect deal for all parties, at least since it became obvious that a permanent transfer was impossible, and Lenglet was unwilling to accept his letter of freedom reportedly offered by Barcelona.
If he had accepted the letter of freedom, he would have been free to choose his future club but would have forfeited all future payments from the Catalonian club.
The only permanent transfer was an offer from the Saudi Pro League, but Lenglet refused to move to Arabia, instead making it clear that he wanted to remain in Europe.
Clement Lenglet to Aston Villa, here we go! Agreement reached on loan deal as Lenglet will travel later today 🟣🔵🇫🇷 #AVFC
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 30, 2023
Negotiations revealed yesterday now set to be sealed, waiting for documents to be signed. Player already agreed. pic.twitter.com/mcvClghH4O
Seville was interested but Aston Villa sniped the deal at the last minute
Earlier this week we reported that Seville was in for Lenglet and a potential two-year loan deal may be agreed upon, but there was always a gap between the wage coverage offered and the wage coverage wanted.
Aston Villa saw this as a good opportunity to jump into the discussion and as they were able to cover 75% of Leglet’s wages, Barcelona were only too happy to accept.
Lenglet will now move back to the Premier League having spent last season on loan at Tottenham, and with Aston Villa close to qualifying for the Europa Conference League, he’ll also have some European football to look forward to.
Aston Villa sees Lenglet as the perfect replacement for Tyrone Mings who unfortunately sustained a serious knee injury on the first day of the Premier League season. Lenglet brings plenty of experience and plenty of talent to the West Midland.
For Barcelona, this represents the closure of a transfer saga that has been dragging on all summer. Moving Lenglet was vital in order to register contract renewals and new signings, and with Joao Cancelo set to arrive any day, this is perfect timing.
Three more player exits to watch as the transfer window expires
Barcelona are expected to have a busy end to the transfer window. Joao Cancelo is the priority, and his arrival is expected in the very near future, but Joan Laporta also wants to bring in Joao Felix.
His arrival is completely dependent on exits occurring.
Girona are still interested in Eric Garcia, but it’s believed Xavi is fighting to keep him.
Chelsea and Tottenham have both been linked with a move for Ansu Fati and Abde Ezzazouli is attracting plenty of attention from around Europe.
We’ve got an interesting few days to look forward to.