Aston Villa are on the verge of losing another key player, and the club are acting swiftly to find cover, having received a promising development in their search for a successor.
Ezri Konsa appears destined to become the latest departure from Villa Park, with the Midlands side moving rapidly to secure an alternative. The centre-back being targeted as his replacement is Tosin Adarabioyo, who finds himself out of favour at Chelsea.
The Gunners have reached an agreement valued at £51million plus additional clauses for Konsa, with the England international having already bid farewell to his teammates at the training ground. He is scheduled to complete his medical examination on Thursday, according to reports.
With Konsa joining Morgan Rogers, Lucas Digne and Youri Tielemans in leaving the club, Villa have identified Tosin as a potential solution to fill the defensive void at the heart of their backline.
Unai Emery’s outfit are eager to pursue a move for the 28-year-old, who has found first-team opportunities hard to come by since joining the west London club two seasons ago, according to Sky Sports.
Although no official bid has been submitted, Tosin is one of several candidates Villa are evaluating as they look to replace Konsa.
Should Villa decide to proceed, they will find encouragement in Chelsea’s position regarding the player.
The defender has been included on a list of players available for transfer and is among a group of up to a dozen individuals training separately at the club’s Cobham facility.
Tosin’s squad number has been altered from four to 38, and while Chelsea are willing to sanction his departure, the club’s asking price remains uncertain.
He has been training alongside Liam Delap, Nicolas Jackson and Mykhailo Mudryk as the club attempts to resolve the futures of several squad members.
Chelsea’s new manager Xabi Alonso is collaborating closely with the club’s football directors to trim the squad ahead of the upcoming Premier League campaign.
The London club currently have 41 senior players registered on their official platform.
With the transfer deadline set for September 1 and Villa’s league opener against Brighton at the AMEX stadium coming just four days later, the Midlands club are racing against the clock to finalise their defensive recruitment.