Aston Villa are targeting an eye-catching move for João Félix after sanctioning the €60m (£50.5m) sale of their record signing, Moussa Diaby, to Al-Ittihad.
Félix, who joined Atlético Madrid in a €126m deal from Benfica as a teenager in 2019, is among those under consideration as Villa prepare for the Champions League. Villa last played in Europe’s elite competition in 1982-83. Félix has spent most of the past two seasons on loan from Atlético, scoring 10 goals in 44 appearances for Barcelona across 2023-24. Chelsea paid €11m (£9.7m) to borrow Félix for the second half of 2022-23 and, although it is unclear how viable a deal is, he is a player of interest to Unai Emery. Félix is under contract at Atlético until 2027.
The 24-year-old Portugal forward is an intriguing prospect for Emery, who likes players capable of operating across the front line, such as the January signing Morgan Rogers. Villa admire the Athletic winger Nico Williams, who has a €58m (£49m) release clause, but the Spain forward, one of the stars of Euro 2024, is a priority target for Barcelona.
