Aston Villa announced the permanent transfer of academy gem Ben Chrisene to Norwich City this week.
The summer transfer window has been all action at Aston Villa with both departures and arrivals to report at Bodymoor Heath.
Seven new faces have been added to Unai Emery’s squad ahead of the 2024/25 calendar, with seven permanent exits to match.
The seventh departure came this week as academy defender Ben Chrisene was sold to Championship side Norwich City.
How much Norwich City have paid to sign Ben Chrisene from Aston Villa
On Tuesday afternoon, Villa announced that Chrisene had made the permanent move to Norwich following a half-season loan spell at Blackburn Rovers.
There were high hopes for the 20-year-old at Villa however, the decision has now been made that moving on is the best option for both parties.
After offloading fellow academy star’s Omari Kellyman and Tim Iroegbunam for a combined total of almost £30m, Chrisene’s price tag has been revealed.
Journalist Nick Mashiter informed supporters that the price Norwich paid for the left-back was in the region of £1.5m, making for a promising capture by the Canaries.
Chrisene’s four-year association with Villa has come to an end, seeing him make just one senior appearance for the Midlands club back in 2021.
Offloading Chrisene was right for Villa and the defender
Making just one senior appearance in the first team squad three years ago made it clear that Chrisene’s chance at a breakthrough was not coming soon.
It’s unfortunate for the Villans to lose such a high-regarded young talent however, the move has come at the right time for the former Exeter City starlet.
A shot at making a breakthrough in the Championship is the ideal step for the 20-year-old, who has the chance to make a name for himself at his new home at Carrow Road.
Speaking for the first time since his move, the full-back spoke highly of Villa’s progression over the past few years, admitting that it got ‘harder’ for players to break into the first team, via Norwich City’s official website.
“I joined Villa when they had just survived relegation from the Premier League so the transition for them over the last four years has been amazing for them.
“It made it harder for younger players to maybe break into the first team but that’s natural when a team’s doing so well.
“For me, it helped me a lot because I was involved around a Premier League team which developed me into the player I am today. It wasn’t meant to be at Villa but I want to play in the Premier League.”
Everyone at Villa will wish Chrisene the best of luck with his new endeavour, with regular Championship football the perfect next step for the youngster.
