Looks like Manchester City, Newcastle United and Aston Villa are all showing interest in Atlético Madrid’s Álex Baena ahead of January.
The Spain international has started the season in excellent form. His performances have apparently caught plenty of attention in England after an impressive World Cup too.
Journalist Rubén Hurtado, writing for Esto es Atleti, now says Manchester City, Newcastle and Aston Villa are “very interested” in signing him.
That’s quite a collection of Premier League clubs, but they need to be patient. The report specifically points towards the January window.
Everyone should have their reasons
Manchester City’s interest comes after changes to their attack during the summer. The departures of Omar Marmoush and Savio reduced their options in those areas.
Baena is now one of the players being considered as City look at ways to add more depth. The Spaniard has already scored three goals this season. And that follows a World Cup in which he helped Spain lift the trophy.
Newcastle have their own reasons for looking at him. The Magpies lost Anthony Gordon earlier in the summer and are searching for further attacking options.
Baena has therefore ended up on their radar as well. The report presents Newcastle as another club seriously considering a move in the winter market.
Aston Villa complete the Premier League trio, and there’s a nice little connection here: Unai Emery already knows Baena very well. So it’s not the first time this link pops up.
The pair worked together at Villarreal, where Baena developed before eventually making his move to Atlético Madrid. And to be fair, Villa have a gap to fill after Morgan Rogers joined Chelsea.
Atlético Madrid aren’t interested in doing business
For all three Premier League clubs, there’s a rather large problem. Atlético Madrid don’t want to sell “for any price”.
Esto es Atleti describes their position as firm and says they won’t consider letting Baena leave midway through the season.
There’s little encouragement coming from the player either. Baena is said to be happy with his role in Madrid and has no intention of leaving despite the Premier League interest.
That makes a January deal difficult for City, Newcastle or Villa before we even get to the potential price. Still, three English clubs are now being pushed forward as serious admirers.
If Baena continues producing after his excellent World Cup and strong start to the season, Atlético can probably expect the English attention to stick around.
