Aston Villa reach agreement in principle for Evann Guessand permanent exit as shock twist emerges
Aston Villa are willing to let Evann Guessand leave Villa Park before the winter transfer window closes on Monday.
After signing Guessand from OGC Nice for an initial fee worth £26million last summer, the 24-year-old has struggled to adapt to life in England.
Although he has had to make do with playing second fiddle to Ollie Watkins, the Ivory Coast international has only scored two goals in 21 appearances across all competitions.
Both of those goals came in the Europa League against Go Ahead Eagles and Basel in October and November, respectively.
But with Aston Villa re-signing former loan star Tammy Abraham on a permanent basis from Besiktas, it seems that Unai Emery is now willing to part with Guessand.
Crystal Palace agree Evann Guessand deal, but Juventus look to hijack move
According to Foot Mercato, Crystal Palace have reached an agreement in principle to sign Guessand on loan for the rest of the season, with the option to make the deal permanent in the summer.
It seems as though Palace are looking to sign a new striker before 7pm on Monday due to the risk of losing Jean-Philippe Mateta, who has been linked with Villa this winter.
Palace’s search for a replacement has seen them set sights on Guessand. However, Foot Mercato claims that an “Italian twist” is not out of the question.
That’s because the French news outlet reports that Juventus have entered the race to sign Aston Villa‘s out-of-form forward.
It is understood that the Serie A giants are ready to offer Villa the same terms as Palace, meaning that a move could be left up to the Ivorian.
Join a Premier League club in freefall whose manager has already confirmed he is leaving in the coming months?
Or join one of the biggest clubs in Europe, who could win silverware this season in Italy and on Friday were drawn to play Galatasaray in the Champions League knock-outs?
Who can Villa sign before the deadline on Monday?
It’s been a mixed winter transfer window at Villa Park.
Alysson and Brian Madjo have both joined to bolster the club’s youth options, with Abraham coming in to join Emery’s first team to add some much-needed depth to the attack.
Douglas Luiz has also returned to B6 on loan from Juventus until the end of the season.
Donyell Malen’s move to Roma understandably upset a lot of fans, but there could be more signings on the horizon.
As mentioned, Palace’s Mateta has been linked but the signing of Abraham has probably put that to bed now.
Celta Vigo’s Oscar Mingueza is someone we could see join Aston Villa. But, as is the case with Guessand, Juventus are also looking at signing him.
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