Aston Villa replacement mooted for Moussa Diaby as medical scheduled
Dan Bardell doesn’t see Aston Villa signing Jaden Philogene as a direct replacement for Moussa Diaby after links to Saudi Arabia.
Fabrizio Romano reported on 16 July that the Villans are demanding over £46 million for the Frenchman from Al Ittihad.
Links to the Saudi Pro League side come as the transfer specialist reported (15 July) that Philogene was set to undergo his medical at Bodymoor Heath.
Sky Sports and talkSPORT journalist Bardell suggested that the 22-year-old won’t be a like-for-like swap for Diaby.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, Bardell said: “You could look at Philogene coming in as a replacement for Diaby. He’s been linked to Al-Ittihad.
“I do look at Diaby and think that he’s more of a number ten for Villa, that’s where he played mainly last season, so I don’t see them being like for like.
“I wouldn’t want to lose Diaby but there becomes a risk that he doesn’t push on next season and this money doesn’t come back around so it’s a tough decision.
“I can see why Villa would be tempted to sell and bring in Philogene but they aren’t necessarily a direct swap.“
Aston Villa to swap Moussa Diaby for Jaden Philogene
The Villans signed the 25-year-old from Bayer Leverkusen for a club-record fee just a year ago and he went on to have an up-and-down debut campaign.
After 10 goals across 54 appearances in all competitions [FotMob], it is safe to say the Frenchman had a somewhat positive return.
With that being said, if the Villans can make an instant profit on Diaby then that may be a clever move financially.
This is only made better by being able to bring in Philogene on a cut-price deal due to their matching clause with Hull City.
The England youth international is technically excellent and very skilful which will make him a nightmare for Premier League defences.
It remains unclear whether potentially swapping Philogene for Diaby will prove to be a positive piece of business but Unai Emery will have a plan in mind moving into the new season.
In other Aston Villa news, Jhon Duran value shocks expert amid West Ham United transfer news.
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