Revealed: Why Aston Villa Accepted Al-Nassr’s €77M Offer for PSG, West Ham January Target | OneFootball

Paris Saint-Germain were reportedly keen on adding Aston Villa forward Jhon Durán to strengthen their attack for the long term. However, the Colombian chose to join Al-Nassr and continue his career in Saudi Arabia.

In the winter transfer window, journalist Ben Jacobs shared that PSG showed interest in Durán but faced a significant hurdle: Aston Villa’s £80 million price tag. Al-Nassr, however, had no problem meeting that demand.

Jacobs also reported that before his move to Saudi Arabia, Aston Villa turned down a £57 million bid from West Ham, their second offer of the window, as they held out for a fee closer to £85 million (€100 million).

Following the sale of the young attacker, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano revealed that Aston Villa will receive a €77 million fixed fee, along with add-ons.

The reason Aston Villa accepted the deal for Jhon Durán

Michael Steele/Getty Images

Aston Villa’s former CEO Keith Wyness, who held the position between 2016 and 2018, has explained why the forward’s departure was a “no-brainer.” Wyness said the lucrative offer for Durán, who had netted 12 goals in 29 appearances for Villa this season, was simply “too good to turn down.”

“It’ll really help Villa with PSR, it’s a big deal,” Wyness told Football Insider. “The profit made on him was just too good to turn down. There were question marks about his temperament with Emery, too. It seems pretty clear, this was a no-brainer.

“Making this profit on a player like that will give them some real leeway going forward. Villa needed the headroom, they’ve got it. They’ve taken a five million pound risk on Rashford, which isn’t that big if he can come good.”