On February 16th, Mundo Deportivo reported everything indicates that Barcelona will sell Clément Lenglet, who’s currently on loan at Aston Villa.
A fresh report from Mundo Deportivo states the La Liga side have several options in the heart of defence and have to offload some of them in the summer.
The Aston Villa man is included in this list and the newspaper states Barca are looking to cash in from his sale.
Lenglet had to initially settle for opportunities in the UEFA Conference League and had to wait until December to make his Premier League debut with the Villans. Since then, the defender has cemented his place and has made 13 league starts for Unai Emery’s side.
After a difficult start to his loan spell at Aston Villa, the 28-year-old has been able to take advantage of the opportunities provided to him in recent months.
The former Sevilla man’s deal at the Camp Nou lasts until 2026 and Mundo claim Barca are ‘convinced’ that Aston Villa ‘will make a low offer’ to buy the Frenchman.That approach could work, with the Catalan club keen to cut ties with the Frenchman.
Part of their issue with him is that he agreed to defer a chunk of his wages during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic. That saw him sign a contract which meant those wages would be paid back over the course of his deal.
Barcelona then expected Lenglet to give up that money, and there even times when they expected any club taking him to cover his whole salary… which would include the money which had been deferred.
Since those lofty delusions, Barcelona have had to become more realistic and there’s a chance Aston Villa could benefit and get a good deal.
