Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz has caught the eye of several clubs around Europe and England to solve their midfield problems and could be on the move away from Villa Park.
Villa Resisting Selling Luiz for Cheap to PL Rivals
The reports around Luiz have grown after Brazilian international Bruno Guimaraes looks destined for a move to Newcastle United. At this moment, Arsenal and Liverpool are in for Luiz, and Villa have confirmed they have had a £30m bid from a Premier League club rejected, which was not Arsenal.
Like Luiz, Guimaraes was also on the radar of top clubs in Europe, including Arsenal, but the super-rich Newcastle United seemed to have sealed the transfer that has now started a race to Luiz’s signature.
Mikel Arteta is desperate to bolster his midfield, which explained the heavy links to Guimaraes, and now with Luiz.
Douglas Luiz’s Contract Situation at Aston Villa
Luiz has got 18 months left on his contract with Aston Villa, and recent reports suggest the Brazilian would like to see his options before deciding on extending his time with Aston Villa.
New manager Steven Gerrard recently opened up on Luiz’s contract situation.
When asked about whether Villa had offered a contract to Luiz, Gerrard said:
"No, we haven’t opened contract talks yet with Douglas.I think in this period and in this window, it has been the case of trying to strengthen the current squad, make additions and, also, find destinations for some of our younger players in terms of loans.Dougie has done okay for us. We’ve been happy with his training level and the performances that he has given.We still think that there’s room for him to get better and improve. You know, he had a bit of an injury when we first arrived and we still think there’s another gear or two for Dougie to go into."
Arsenal are expected to step up their efforts to sign Douglas Luiz this week, according to @birmingham_live! ⚽️
— AFTV (@AFTVMedia) January 27, 2022
What would you consider a reasonable fee for the Brazilian? 💰 #Arsenal #AFC #Luiz pic.twitter.com/GbOy1jYJoC
Villa Working on Bolstering Their Own Midfield
Villa themselves are working on a high-profile acquisition of their own, as they are working to bring in Rodrigo Bentancur all the way from Turin. Bentancur seems to be a cheaper defensive-midfield option when compared to Villa’s first preference, Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma.
The 25-year-old Malian has been heavily linked with a transfer to Villa Park, but the club have been put off by the price tag of £50million set by his employers, Brighton and Hove Albion. Bentancur on the other hand is said to be available for just around £16million.
Under the ambitious owners: Villa has recently acquired the services of Steven Gerrard as manager from Rangers, Lucas Digne from Everton to upgrade the left-back position, and even got Gerrard’s ex-teammate, Phillipe Coutinho from Barcelona on a 6-month loan deal.
Luiz has made 17 appearances for Villa this season, picking up three assists, but Luiz’s contract situation is something Villa will be desperate to solve, as he enters the final stages of his current contract in the summer.
Signing Bentancur from Juventus could ease Villa’s hand, as they would have found a fine replacement for Douglas Luiz.