£45m midfielder is keen on joining Aston Villa

With each and every step, Aston Villa are making further progress in their bid to become one of England’s elite outfits once again.

The rise of Unai Emery at Villa Park has been remarkable, and this journey has been crowned by triumph in the Europa League before the summer break, Freiburg beaten 3-0 in a one-sided drubbing.

But the 2026/27 campaign will not run on last year’s juices, and Emery and company are pushing to freshen up the squad and consolidate the club’s position in the top four.

There is still a lot to sort out. The Villans may have won the race for exciting midfield talent Johan Manzambi, but Amadou Onana won’t be kicking any balls any time soon, having ruptured the ACL in his right knee while playing for Belgium at the World Cup.

How Aston Villa are combating Onana injury

When Aston Villa’s Onana received his prognosis less than a week ago, Villa fans would have been forgiven for assuming that the club would not engineer the sale of Youri Tielemans to Manchester United only days later.

But the Belgian mainstay is one of the very best in the business, assured and calculated on the ball, sharp-witted when splitting defensive lines, and combative when against the run of play.

Replacing him will be difficult, especially now Onana’s calendar year is over. Villa have hijacked Newcastle United’s £49m pursuit of Manzambi, and the 20-year-old will add quite the dimension to Emery’s midfield next season, albeit bringing a different flavour than the likes of Tielemans and Onana.

Switzerland manager Murat Yakin has remarked that “you can really use him in every position“, and indeed, his versatility is one of his biggest allies, along with sheer strength and a varied technical skillset, a keen eye for goal.

Manzambi can play the part of combative number six, but that is not his forte. Moreover, he is not a deep-lying playmaker of the vein of Bergvall, and with that in mind, Aston Villa clearly need another midfield profile before summer is up.

Aston Villa in talks to sign bigger talent than Manzambi

Manzambi’s World Cup campaign has drawn plenty of plaudits: he scored three goals and supplied two assists across four World Cup games for Switzerland, starting only twice.

However, Manzambi was utilised as a sort of turbo-charged secret weapon, and while his Bundesliga form for Freiburg tells of a more varied and dynamic midfielder, Villa could benefit from someone who instils control and balance.

Well, according to TEAMtalk, Aston Villa could be encouraged to launch a formal move for Tottenham’s Lucas Bergvall this summer, with the Swedish midfielder, 20, keen on completing a transfer to Villa Park.

Aston Villa have not made a formal approach yet, but the £45m-rated Bergvall has indeed handed in a transfer request down N17 this summer, and with Chelsea also interested, NSWE would be wise to advance quickly.

Former Manchester City Pep Guardiola has even singled Bergvall out in the past for his “unstoppable” dribbling skills when on the ball. In that, he shares properties with Manzambi while simultaneously bringing a more flavourful passing game.

His silky skills are a nice little bonus, and one in which the Midlands side could utilise to bring over a sort of hybrid midfield talent, incorporating elements from a variety of players’ games, such as Tielemans and Manzambi.

His more dynamic game could even see him eclipse Manzambi in terms of long-term impact, with The Athletic’s JJ Bull for having “a first touch like Luka Modric“, and given that Tottenham hijacked Barcelona’s bid to sign the 14-cap Sweden international, who starred under Graham Potter at the World Cup, it’s clear that this is a young midfielder with world-class potential.

Those of a Spurs persuasion may be frustrated to have been used as a stepping stone by one of their most exciting young midfielders, but it is a credit to Aston Villa’s growth that they are now ostensibly ahead of them in the Premier League pecking order.

Bergvall is a potential superstar, and given that his skills align with those of the departing Tielemans, he could end up being the star summer signing for Emery’s high-flying outfit.