Aston Villa have allowed midfielder Conor Hourihane to go out on loan to Swansea City, seemingly because they think a replacement is coming in.
The Irishman hasn’t been featuring prominently at Villa Park this season, but letting him go seems like a risk unless a signing is arriving.
The main name in the frame is that of Morgan Sanson, with the Marseille star strongly linked in recent days.
Reports from the Daily Mail suggested that talks have been opened for Sanson, with Villa hoping to land a bargain deal inside the final 18 months of his deal.
Marseille allegedly need to raise funds, and The Express and Star claim that Villa have already agreed personal terms with Sanson, hoping to strike a £15million deal.
Now though, Marseille boss Andre Villas-Boas has been quoted by Get French Football News as saying that a ‘very, very weak offer’ from Villa has been snubbed.
Villas-Boas went onto claim their bid was ‘pathetic’, and now hopes Sanson can remain focused on Marseille until a better offer is made.
“We had a very, very weak offer from Aston Villa which we turned down,” said Villas-Boas. “It was pathetic… I hope that he continues to remain professional,” he added.
Those are strong words from Villas-Boas, laying down the gauntlet to Villa; if they want to sign the 26-year-old, they need to come back with a much better bid.
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