Aston Villa attempted to sign Nico Williams during the last summer window, driven on by their manager Unai Emery being a big fan of the Athletic Club Bilbao player, reports Marca.
At that time it was a task too far for the Premier League club. Emery’s full impact hadn’t been seen at Aston Villa and the club didn’t have the rather attractive Champions League tag attached to them.
Williams decided to stay at Athletic and concentrate on doing his best for them and being in the best shape for Euro 2024. That plan certainly went very well indeed.
At club level Williams won the Copa del Rey with Athletic, which saw amazing scenes in Bilbao as the Basque side’s supporters celebrated a very special achievement.
Williams was able to experience that with his brother Inaki, making it all the more special. Then, he went off to Euro 2024 and was not only one of the best players at the tournament but also helped Spain win the entire thing.
That decision to snub Aston Villa isn’t looking so bad, with Marca backing it, and unfortunately for Emery the player’s performances since may have put him out of reach permanently.
Marca claim he’s ‘the name of the summer’ and ‘star of the transfer market’. The Spanish newspaper says Emery has been ‘in love’ with Williams’ game since the first time he saw him play.
Now it’s Barcelona who are circling to try and secure the 22-year-old, who has a release clause of around €58m.
Williams has kept his transfer options open, both by not signing a new contract with a much higher clause, and by his words in recent interviews, so there’s some hope at Barcelona that the move could happen.
Unfortunately for Aston Villa it looks like their chance came and went last year.
