Aston Villa are interested in a potential deal for a player who formed part of a side relegated from the Premier League last season.
Unai Emery has already added seven players to his Aston Villa squad this summer, with Amadou Onana’s £50 million arrival the latest deal completed.
Villa have seen qualification for the Champions League allow them to shop in a more premium market, with talk of a potential deal for Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid further evidence of this.
However, Villa do not have an endless supply of funds despite high-profile sales of Douglas Luiz and Moussa Diaby and will therefore have to continue to balance big money signings with more astute business.
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That could be exactly what Emery and Monchi are about to do with a surprise move for a player who managed to stand out despite relegation with a poor Burnley side last season.
Aston Villa a ‘competitor’ to sign Lorenz Assignon this summer
Full-back was seen as a key area to address by Emery this summer.
The Spaniard has seen the left-back spot resolved for years to come with the arrival of Ian Maatsen but right-back is still an issue.
Matty Cash has been a stalwart in the position since signing in 2020 but suffered a dramatic downturn in form towards the end of last season and could be upgraded this summer.
That has seen the likes of Denzel Dumfries and Jeremie Frimpong both linked, but it now looks as though Villa could make a move for more cost-effective option.
That is according to Foot Mercato, who report that: ‘AS Roma positioned itself on him [Assignon] several days ago, and the 23-year-old player was even able to exchange with sports director Florent Ghisolfi and coach Daniele De Rossi’.
The report went on to add that, despite Roma’s interest: ‘a new competitor has entered the dance according to our information. This is Aston Villa, the most spending English club at the moment on the market. Rennes wants to recover €10 million (£8.4m) on the transfer of its player’.
Is Assigning an upgrade on Matty Cash?
With the likes of Dumfries and Frimpong both obvious improvements on Cash, the only reason Villa can be targeting Assignon is the fact he is a much cheaper option.
However, it is up for debate whether Assignon would be an upgrade on the Poland international.
Of course, it may be that Emery simply wants competition for Cash and is willing to give the current Villa man the chance to fight for his place, but the impressive pre-season performances of Kosta Nedeljkovic have proven that he could provide competition if that is all Emery wants.
Assignon spent the second half of last season on loan at Burnley from Rennes, scoring once and assisting twice in 15 Premier League games.
An attack-minded right-back who can be suspect defensively, this is an intriguing link and will certainly be one to keep an eye on as it develops.
