Aston Villa now face a Bayern Munich battle for Pau Torres after the Premier League outfit reportedly made an opening offer for the Villarreal defender.
While Aston Villa have come on leaps and bounds since Unai Emery replaced Steven Gerrard in the autumn – securing a top-half finish and a long-awaited return to European football – the first few weeks of the summer have perhaps offer a reality-checking reminder of the gap that still exists between the Midland giants and Europe’s bonafide ‘superclubs’.
Aston Villa showed an interest in both Marco Asensio and Manuel Ugarte. That was, however, until Paris Saint-Germain blew Emery and co out the water.
The extent of Villa’s pulling power will once again come under a serious examination in their ongoing pursuit of the Spain international Pau Torres too.
Aston Villa face Bayern Munich battle
According to Cadena Ser, Villa are one of two clubs to submit an ‘official offer’ for the £40 million-rated Torres. The Villarreal-born defender was a key part of the Emery team which stunned Juventus and Bayern on route to the Champions League semi-finals in 2022, and the former Arsenal boss would relish the chance to reunite with a player he rates so highly in England (Birmingham Mail).
“Pau Torres is an amazing player,” the former Arsenal boss once told Football London of Torres.
“I think he’s top. I’ve been a coach at Sevilla, PSG, Arsenal and I’ve never seen a centre-back like Pau Torres.
“I think he’s going to play at the highest level. He’s playing now in the national team, but he can play in the top teams in Europe very soon.”
Unfortunately for Aston Villa, Emery might soon be proven right.
German publication Sport1 believe that talks between Bayern Munich and Torres’ camp are now underway. A stylish, left-footed centre-half renowned for his aerial presence and his excellent passing range, Torres would arrive at Bayern as a likely replacement for another big-name player who could end up at the Parc des Princes; 2018 World Cup winner Lucas Hernandez.
Juventus are also keen.
Tottenham Hotspur, meanwhile, were rejected by Torres back in 2021.
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