Aston Villa have acted quick in bolstering their squad for the 2022/23 season and have already secured deals for Philippe Coutinho and Boubacar Kamara.
On May 26th, the Villans confirmed they have “reached an agreement with Sevilla for the transfer of Diego Carlos for an undisclosed fee”.
Reports in the Spanish press stated that Aston Villa will pay around €35-40m to the La Liga side, with one claims pushing that as high as €50m including bonuses.
Marca’s Alberto Fernández isn’t pleased the centre-back has decided to swap Andalusia for Birmingham, which he feels is a ‘100 times less pleasant place to live’.
The Spanish club have made it clear they need to raise funds to balance their books.
Fernández believes Julen Lopetegui’s side were ‘forced to sell’ the Brazilian. He suggests the 29-year-old’s decision to join Aston Villa, a team that finished 14th in the table, is hard to digest for Sevilla fans.
The English club also beat Atlético Madrid to Kamara. Fernández uses these deals as examples to state the Premier League is gaining more strength than other leagues.
This, he feels, is down to the finances as uncapped players like Carlos can land a ‘crazy contract’ that can change their lives. His salary will almost double in Birmingham, which Marca again say isn’t a great place to live, but you ‘don’t suffer with your pockets full’.
Fernández is ‘convinced’ Sevilla could have ‘pushed harder’ for more money, if not for the urgent need to raise funds. The ‘only good thing’ from Carlos’ sale to Steven Gerrard’s side is that they can now demand for a ‘much higher payment’ for their other stars.
“And the pity, because it should be said that way, is that a club that has been in the Champions League for three years in a row goes to the market in a cold sweat to see if someone offers them a good capital gain for their stars,” Fernández said.
“Sevilla have become important with this business model, always starting from scratch. In the Premier League, they start from several floors above. As long as La Liga does not come close, we will continue to be that fishing ground for those who use pounds. Although sportingly… in Europe we will meet.”
