A big update has emerged on Aston Villa and their attempts to bolster their defensive options ahead of the 2023/24 campaign…
What's the latest on Pau Torres to Aston Villa?
According to Football Insider, the Villans are in contact with Villarreal over a deal to sign central defender Pau Torres in the summer transfer window.
The report claims that Unai Emery has made the Spain international his number one target and that the club are now closing in on a swoop for the 26-year-old titan.
It states that they are making progress over a transfer and that it is set to take a fee of at least £40m, which would be a club record, to get it over the line.
Would Pau Torres be a good signing for Aston Villa?
The Premier League side appointed Monchi as their new president of football operations recently and securing a deal for Torres would represent his first blinder as the LaLiga ace would be a terrific addition to the squad.
It would be a masterclass from the former Sevilla supremo as he would be providing Emery with a top-quality left-footed defender who excels at keeping the ball away from his own box and using his ability in possession to progress his team up the pitch.
Over the last 365 days, the Villarreal star, who talent scout Jacek Kulig dubbed "wonderful" on the ball, ranks in the top 4% or higher amongst his positional peers across the Men's Big Five Leagues for progressive passes and progressive carries per 90.
Whereas, Tyrone Mings does not rank higher than the top 47% of players in the same category for either statistic over the last 365 days of action.
This suggests that Monchi could improve Villa's ability to play out from the back by landing an upgrade on the left-footed England international on the ball, given that Torres is one of the best players in the major leagues when it comes to breaking lines and driving up the pitch to make things happen for his team.
The Spaniard has also produced consistently impressive and dominant performances for his club in LaLiga in recent seasons.
He averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.04 across 34 league outings in 22/23 and won 61% of his individual duels, which came after the colossal ace won 66% of his battles and averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.09 in 21/22.
Mings, on the other hand, has averaged a rating of 6.91 in the Premier League across the last two campaigns, indicating that Torres would also be an upgrade on the current Villa defender in terms of his average performance level at the back.
Therefore, Monchi could land his first masterclass by getting this deal over the line for the defender as his statistics suggest that he would be a sensational addition to Emery's options in defence.