Aston Villa ‘absolutely crazy’ to miss out on sensational Marc Guehi swap transfer after £28m news
Aston Villa watched on as Manchester City sealed a deal for Marc Guehi.
Villa missed out on the chance to sign Guehi as he linked up with Pep Guardiola in a cut-price deal with Manchester City.
A £20million deal caught the Premier League by surprise, especially after Guehi was previously linked with a £70m move to Chelsea.
The Villans weren’t necessarily in the market for a centre-back, but after back-to-back home defeats for Villa against Everton and Brentford, maybe they should have been.
Guehi would have been an elite option for Unai Emery, and he could have utilised Crystal Palace’s interest in Evann Guessand to get a deal over the line.
Aston Villa could have utilised Evann Guessand in Marc Guehi swap deal
Tammy Abraham came in at Villa Park to become a new striker option, while Leon Bailey returned from his loan spell at Roma.
That left very little need for Guessand after his big-money move from OGC Nice in the summer.
The Ivory Coast international has been terrible in claret and blue, so it was a shock when Crystal Palace were willing to take him on loan this winter.
If the 24-year-old matches set criteria, the Eagles will pay £28m for a permanent deal, something which has certainly raised eyebrows in B6.
Former Villa scout Bryan King has been left baffled by that fee and has questioned why a swap deal wasn’t organised for Guehi.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, King said: “It’s absolutely crazy [£28m for Guessand].
“Even if you are getting rid of Guessand, you have to question why they missed out on Guehi.
“Villa could have brought him in for £20m, and they didn’t. Now they’re sending Guessand there for £28m, why couldn’t they swap him for Guehi?
“I don’t know.
“He’s been terrible, so getting that fee for him just proves that Palace are struggling.“
Pau Torres would have been done if Guehi joined Aston Villa
Guehi has quickly become one of the best defenders in the Premier League as his stock has risen monumentally in the past two seasons.
His regular spot in the England starting XI has certainly helped that, a position which he has often been joined by Ezri Konsa.
The duo could have linked up with the Villans and formed an elite partnership, but that would have come at the expense of Pau Torres.
The Spaniard would have likely been shut out in B6 to accommodate the Crystal Palace man, in a move that no Villa fan would have argued with.
It would have made for an interesting scenario, but it is one that isn’t going to happen now that Guehi has completed his Manchester City switch.