It’s no coincidence that Steven Gerrard walked away from Rangers after the club’s board blocked his attempts to bring Hibernian striker Kevin Nisbet to Ibrox in a £4 million deal last summer.
And while no one is suggesting that history could repeat itself at Aston Villa, this is a warning that must be heeded by those in control at the Midland giants. Fail to match Gerrard’s ambition and one of Europe’s most highly-rated young managers won’t hesitate to consider his options.
Fortunately, while Rangers were unwilling to pay the kind of money Hibs wanted for Nisbet, Aston Villa have a pair of billionaire owners – Nayef Sawiris and Wes Edens – who have proven on multiple occasions that they are more than willing to put their money where their mouth is.
Their bite, evidence suggests, is just as strong as their bark. It was Villa’s ambition that attracted Gerrard to the job in the first place, after all.
Gerrard wanted a left-back. Aston Villa gave him Lucas Digne; one of the very best in his position. Gerrard wanted Philippe Coutinho. He got him too. Even before Gerrard’s arrival, Villa invested just shy of £100 million on Leon Bailey, Danny Ings and Emi Buendia.
And before you point out that Villa essentially bankrolled last summer’s deals by selling Jack Grealish to Manchester City, Buendia was intended to play alongside Grealish in Dean Smith’s side, rather than in his place. Villa were always going to spend big, even if Grealish stayed put.
Will Kalvin Phillips be Aston Villa’s new record signing?
Kalvin Phillips, however, is Aston Villa’s most ambitious project yet. Certainly the most expensive. Leeds United want £60 million for 2021’s England Player of the Year (Times).
And, after Jesse Marsch’s side picked up two stoppage-time wins in their last two outings – putting a sizeable buffer between themselves and the drop zone – an already difficult challenge has just become that whole lot harder. Phillips, of course, is a boyhood Leeds supporter and won’t turn his back for any old club.
It is no secret that Gerrard has made a specialist ‘number six’ his top summer target. Yves Bissouma, Wilfred Ndidi and Tottenham loanee Rodrigo Bentancur have been linked already.
And Phillips certainly fits the bill. A ball-winner and a ball-player rolled into one, Phillips is arguably the most complete deep-lying midfielder currently plying his trade outside of the Premier League’s top four.
The Mail believe that Villa could sell Douglas Luiz to make room for Phillips. And such a move would make sense – not just because the former Man City youngster will be a free-agent in 2023.
Luiz’s form has dipped this term and it’s common knowledge that he prefers to play in a more advanced, box-to-box role. Positions that John McGinn and Aaron Ramsey have made their own in claret-and-blue.
Aston Villa have made a habit of replacing good players with great ones of late. Tom Heaton for Emi Martinez. Frederic Guilbert for Matty Cash. Wesley Moraes for Ollie Watkins. Matt Targett for Lucas Digne (even if the latter is yet to live up to expectations).
Luiz out, Phillips in would be a continuation of that trend.
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