Aston Villa is the frontrunner to sign the underrated La Liga star, who was the product of La Masia, for their summer transfer.
Aston Villa have been reportedly keen on securing the move of the La Liga star who has been in form lately with his current club. He helped his team progress to the latter stage of the Europa League before losing to Freiburg in the quarterfinal and sit on the sixth, which is on the verge of qualifying for another continental competition.
That player in question is Ilaix Moriba. According to the report in SportBoom, Villa is the potential suitor for the Guinean international.
Under Unai Emery, they are believed to be leading the chase for a midfielder with European pedigree and tactical versatility. Villa is preparing a package in the region of €20 million as an initial offer, potentially enhanced through performance-based add-ons. “
The 23-year-old midfielder joined and arrived in Celta Vigo last summer. He completed his move to Balaídos after staying on loan there for a year. Previously, he was loaned out to Getafe in the 2023/24 season.
Moriba is still tied up with his current contract, which ends in 2029. Therefore, Celta is not in a hurry to sell him. Yet, if any potential suitors are ready to pay his price tag, which is about £26 million, they could let him go.
Such a price tag should not be a problem for any Premier League side, including Aston Villa. Another team which also joins the race from the English top flight is Brighton, whereas FC Porto and Real Sociedad have been gaining interest too and monitoring the situation.
However, Celta’s deal with Barcelona, his parent club before switching sides to Germany, might also add some complexity, albeit not much. The Catalan side holds 10% of Moriba’s sell clause. Thus, Celta would attempt to optimise his sale for sure.
Moriba is the kind of midfielder who excels in both defending and building the attack. The former RB Leipzig man has featured 82 times with Celta Vigo, netting twice and providing six assists so far.
Based on the data in FotMob, his defensive contributions reach 149, including 85 tackles, 26 interceptions and 32 clearances. His percentage of winning duels is quite high too, up to 57.1%, including 31.9% in aerial duels. His successful dribbles are 48.1%. Meanwhile, his successful passes can be up to 88.3%, with accurate long balls reaching 67.4%.
The midfielder, who is also the product of the Barcelona academy, could be a long-term successor for Youri Tielemans or his deputy should the Belgian not be sold. The Guinean midfielder can help Villa perform consistently when it comes to rotating the squad. It would be a common agenda for Emery’s side when they play in the Champions League.
With such a low price and high-quality talent, Villa should be prioritising signing him immediately. His signing can be part of the team’s strategic move to build the team, especially since Villa might not extend Douglas Luiz’s loan spell. Moriba might have regular minutes in the Midlands side too.
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