Ashley Preece of Birmingham Live has said that Aston Villa could sign Ross Barkley from Chelsea if they match his asking price.
The 26-year-old joined on a season-long loan from Chelsea and has impressed under Dean Smith, so it’s not surprising that there’s talk of Villa turning his move permanent.
In a transfer update for Birmingham Live, Preece wrote:
There’s no buy option in place within Barkley’s loan agreement but Chelsea would be willing to sell as long as the price is right. They signed the former England man for £15 million from Everton two years ago and, you suspect, conversations will only start at double that amount.
The 26-year-old is really enjoying his football again and that could play into his thinking surrounding a permanent move to Villa Park should Villa continue to have a brilliant season. His friendship with Grealish could well be a huge factor, too.
Barkley has made six appearances in all competitions for Villa, scoring one goal and supplying one assist. He has created 15 chances, completed 83.2% of his 190 passes, recorded successful dribbles and taken 17 shots, with 29% hitting the target. [WhoScored]
The England international, who Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has called ‘first class’, has been a regular at Villa and may not get as many opportunities back at Stamford Bridge, so Barkley has a lot to consider.
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Barkley started only 13 Premier League games last season and would have N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount and Kay Havertz for competition at his parent club, so he might be better off in the Midlands.
He used to star for England but the last of his 33 caps came in October 2019. However, if he continues to do well at Villa, it might see him get another look-in under Gareth Southgate.
The only issue for Villa is his asking price. The 26-year-old joined Chelsea from Everton for £15m in 2018 and is valued at €15m-€20m (£13.5m-£18m) with CIES Football Observatory and £19.3m with Transfermarkt. Preece believes he will be worth close to £30m, though, so time will tell if Villa are able to turn his loan move into a permanent deal.
In other news, Ashley Preece backs one man to ‘stick around’ at Aston Villa in January despite amassing only 13 minutes of Premier League football this season.
