Atlético Madrid defender Matteo Ruggeri will fly to England today to undergo a medical with Aston Villa.
Marca report on the 24-year-old full-back today. He is closing in on his long gestating move to Villa Park.
Permission to travel granted
The ‘exodus’ of players at Atlético is beginning to take shape. Mattero Ruggeri is one of those who will be departing.
The Italian has now received authorisation from Los Rojiblancos to travel to England and finalise his move to Aston Villa. He’ll travel to the UK in the coming hours to undergo a medical and seal his departure from the Spanish club.
While Aston Villa are competing in the UEFA Super Cup, the Italian will be in England to ‘definitively close’ his transfer. He will replace Lucas Digne at Villa Park, who left Birmingham to move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Atlético director of football Mateu Alemany finished hammering out the specifics of the transfer with Aston Villa on Tuesday evening. The deal will bring €26m into Atlético’s coffers if performance bases clauses are met.
Funds required in Madrid
Matteo Ruggeri’s departure from the Wanda Metropolitano is part of a major effort from Atlético to make room for new signings. The Italian is the next on the list to be finalised. An announcement will be delayed given Aston Villa’s participation in the Super Cup.
Tthe deal is now in the final stages, nonetheless. Ruggeri will fly to England today, undergo a medical and finalise his move to Villa Park in the coming days. Atlético certainly want a deal done as quickly as possible.
They want to release funds so that they can start signing players themselves. Tottenham’s Cuti Romero is at the top of that list. And Ruggeri’s switch to Villa Park will help to fund that.
