BirminghamLive brings you the latest Aston Villa news as Unai Emery gives a transfer update ahead of next week’s deadline
Unai Emery confirms Aston Villa are not looking to directly replace Tyrone Mings or Emi Buendia in the final days of the summer transfer window.
Both players suffered serious knee injuries earlier this month, and will spend an extended period of time on the sidelines in rehabilitation. Villa have so far signed four players this summer, with Youri Tielemans, Pau Torres, Moussa Diaby and Nicolo Zaniolo all joining, while several players have departed and more are set to follow.
Cameron Archer is poised to join Sheffield United for £18.5million, while Jaden Philogene is closing in on a move to Hull City for £5million. Another academy graduate, Aaron Ramsey, sealed a £14million switch to Burnley earlier this week, but Emery is pleased with his squad depth heading into the final week of the window.
“Yes I am happy,” the Villa head coach said when asked about the options he has in his squad. “We are working being extremely focused and deep in our decisions. We have let some players leave and adding others, we are trying to be intelligent and smart in the last days of the transfer window if we need something more and if someone is leaving as well.
“We had two horrible injuries with Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendia. We are not trying to replace them, but we are being concerned with how we can occupy the spaces they are letting in the squad, with the player we have now in the squad or from outside who can help us. We can’t replace them because Tyrone and Emiliano are two very special players for us, but we have to think how we can manage and use the gap in the squad they are letting us occupy.”
He added: “We are trying as well to be intelligent in the way we are taking with some players, young players. Cameron Archer, Aaron Ramsey, Jaden (Philogene) because they are young players, they can develop a lot in their career, but we are having a very good offer for them and we are letting them to go and trying to keep under our control the possibility of them coming back because we believe in them.
“We know now they need to play minutes, take confidence and here maybe they are not going to have the same opportunity like they can have playing in other teams. We are selling them because as well for us economically it is good, but always trying to control them and follow their progress like we think they can do. Then, of course, they are increasingly the level we are thinking, they can be again with us coming back.”