Aston Villa wanted Geoffrey Kondogbia on deadline day but simply didn’t have enough time to convince him into making the move.
Villa had business to do on deadline day and most of it surrounded their midfield.
Yes, Jan Bednarek came in from Southampton but Villa also brought in Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Leander Dendoncker.
Some wondered whether Kondogbia would be coming in to replace Douglas Luiz, who was the source of major interest from Arsenal.
The Gunners pushed and pushed, even making multiple bids but couldn’t land their man – even though Villa wanted another midfielder.
Aston Villa wanted Geoffrey Kondogbia
Spanish newspaper Marca claim that Aston Villa made a late move to try and sign Atletico Madrid ace Geoffrey Kondogbia.
It’s stated that Villa tried ‘at the last breath’ of the transfer window and tried to strike a deal through an intermediary agent.
The report suggests that Villa’s attempt just came too late and Kondogbia instead chose to stay with Atletico beyond the deadline.
Kondogbia, 29, has only started one league game this season and his La Liga minutes tally for the campaign currently stands at 109.
Kondogbia just isn’t a key player under Diego Simeone and that’s why Villa tried their lucky with a late deal for the giant defensive midfielder.
It’s unclear whether Kondogbia would have been an alternative to Dendoncker, but it feels more likely that he was lined up just in case Douglas Luiz did leave.
The Central African Republic international prefers to play at the base of the midfield just like Douglas Luiz and possesses experience at the very top level.
Kondogbia was linked with Villa earlier this summer, with TEAMtalk reporting their interest alongside claiming that he was earning £115,000-a-week at Atletico.
That would have been a significant outlay for Villa on deadline day, and Kondogbia may be another name for Villa fans to keep an eye on for 2023 just in case Douglas Luiz ends up leaving.
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