Before Villa’s season kicks-off this weekend, let’s get up to speed with what’s happening transfer-wise.
While the right-back stocks are brimming to the max, things have been happening in the left-back department.
Also, the crazy situation that is Ross McCormack, may have found some short-term solution at least due to one of his ex-bosses.
Aly Flava
If you ran a poll last week asking Villa supporters who Aly Cissokho played for, there’s a good chance some Villa fans would have thought we’d already sold him last season.
Villa’s forgotten left-back had seemingly slipped off the radar.
Finally, the 29-year-old has found a club for real though, in the form of Turkish Super League side Yeni Malatyaspor.
The transfer fee of around £1.3million for the 29-year-old is reportedly their record signing.
Lets put it is way, it’s definitely a rare entry in the good business column for Villa.
Looking back at the Cissokho, you have to say it was worth signing him simply to alert Villans to the Aly Cissokho – Fever for the Flava Youtube compilation video.
A video featuring such highlights as Cissokho being tackled by Leandro Bacuna, a wolf, flames galore and Cissokho releasing the Kraken.
It’s the Twin Peaks of football videos!
Monaco Connection
Bubbling away in the background are reports that another Villa left-back, Jordan Amavi, might yet leave.
The most recent reports have linked Monaco to the left-back.
Steve Bruce though, has since told the Birmingham Mail:
“At this particular moment we haven’t had anything from Monaco.”
I’m sure Amavi and the club, at the end of last season, would have both expected him to have already moved on by now, but things haven’t gone to plan.
Will this ‘failed medical’ at Sevilla put a shadow of suspicion over the player, that will put clubs off?
Certainly Amavi remains one of the players the club could get proper money for (although not the £20m that the Doctor Tony mooted last season!).
If he stays though, Bruce has said, he’d be “delighted”. Amavi can also give the Villa manager an additional option on the left-wing too, as Andre Green is unlikely to play every game this season.
McCormack Warms Up
As we mentioned in the previous Transfer Wrap, Bruce confirmed that there had been approaches for Ross McCormack.
Also, as stated in that post, any loan deal is not exactly ideal for Villa, especially if the Black Cats don’t want to pay all of McCormack’s wages, which has been the issue slowing the deal down.
When the Scotsman’s wages are widely reported to be around £45,000-per-week, perhaps it’s no surprise.
Sunderland boss, Simon Grayson on the subject of McCormack, this week, stated:
“It just shows you what the size of the football club is that we continue to be linked with these good players, that will continue to be the case because of who we are.”
A size of football club that perhaps shouldn’t be scrimping around for part-wage payment loans?
The Black Cats boss went on to say, he wasn’t too optimistic for the deal to be completed in time for their first game.
“Will any deals be done for Friday? Probably not, but it doesn’t mean to say we’re not working hard.”
The moral of this Ross McCormack story is though, who thought paying a transfer fee of over £10m and paying a 30-year-old player, who’s never played in the Championship, £45,000-a-week?
Jeez.
UTV
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