Aston Villa have expressed interest in Jean-Philippe Mateta as the French forward remains locked in a contract disagreement with Crystal Palace.
Mateta, who represents France internationally, could be set for a move to Villa Park, with the Birmingham club monitoring the situation closely.
Villa enter the new Premier League campaign having seen several important players depart, including Morgan Rogers, Ezri Konsa, Youri Tielemans and Lucas Digne.
Despite those departures, manager Unai Emery possesses sufficient depth to handle the demands of competing in both the Premier League and Champions League, along with cup competitions.
The club have already reinforced their squad with several signings. Johan Manzambi and Joao Gomes bolster the midfield options, while Matteo Ruggeri, Moudou Keba Cisse and Aaron Wan-Bissaka strengthen the defensive ranks. Zion Suzuki has arrived from Parma to provide competition for the goalkeeper position.
Villa are now exploring the possibility of signing a backup striker to support Ollie Watkins, with Mateta identified as a potential option.
According to reports, Villa have contacted Palace regarding the 29-year-old, though Palace have no desire to part with their leading forward. No formal bid has been submitted at this stage.
The situation stems from an ongoing contractual dispute between Mateta and his current club. The forward has referred the matter to FIFA regarding the remaining portion of his contract, which is scheduled to conclude next summer.
Mateta joined Palace initially on an 18-month loan arrangement in 2021, before committing to a four-and-a-half-year deal the following January. That agreement contained a clause allowing Palace to extend by a further 12 months, which the club triggered in 2024. This means his current contract runs until the end of the 2026/27 season.
Mateta contends that the additional year, which was added as an option, should be considered invalid. The matter was reviewed by an independent tribunal operating under Premier League regulations. He also escalated the dispute to FIFA, though the governing body determined the case fell outside its jurisdiction.
As a result, Mateta must honour the remaining duration of his contract with Palace. He featured in Palace’s lineup for Saturday’s 2-0 defeat against Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium, being replaced after 63 minutes by Jorgen Strand Larsen.
Villa begin their season at the AMEX Stadium against Brighton on Sunday, with kickoff scheduled for 2pm.