Fabrizio Romano has taken to Twitter to reveal that Axel Tuanzebe is close to leaving Aston Villa, with Napoli set to take him on loan from Manchester United.
What’s the story?
Well, Romano believes the £50,000-a-week defender’s loan at Villa Park will be terminated, to ensure he can join Napoli on a short-term deal.
The Italian side will pay the Red Devils a €600,000 loan fee to take the 24-year-old until June, as well as a further €600,000 in bonuses (£501,000).
It comes after Tuanzebe made just six Premier League starts for Aston Villa this season, as he struggled to displace Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa.
Romano adds that the centre-back will undergo his medical in Italy on Friday, before putting pen to paper on his contract.
It doesn’t feel as if the Villans put up much of a fight to keep Tuanzebe, so it could be assumed that Steven Gerrard was unconvinced by the defender.
Nevertheless, we hope he can find some rhythm in Serie A, for the sake of his stuttering career.
Should Aston Villa replace Axel Tuanzebe?
Of course, Tuanzebe was never owned by Aston Villa, but his mid-season departure will leave a gap in Gerrard’s squad at Villa Park regardless.
Now, the Villans only have Mings, Konsa and Kortney Hause to choose from in the centre-back department.
That isn’t ideal for Gerrard, as there is little depth in that area.
With a busy second half of the season to go, in which the Villans face a potential FA Cup run as well as a gruelling Premier League schedule, one more centre-back certainly wouldn’t go amiss.
Keep an eye on things at Villa Park, as it wouldn’t surprise us to see Gerrard dip into the market to replace Tuanzebe.
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