Aston Villa new signing could be switching sides in January
One of Aston Villa’s new signings could be moving to a new club sooner rather than later following the current interest.
Aston Villa have signed 10 new players this season but have just fielded nine of them. Leon Goretzka is the only player left who has yet to make his debut for the Lions. Almost all of the signings have started to perform well and gained more minutes on the pitch, including their Italian star, Matteo Ruggeri.
According to a report in firenzeviola.it, the left-back has attracted interest from his former side, Fiorentina.
“The interest in (Matteo) Ruggeri, who was sought last summer, is being floated again. He’s started on the bench for Aston Villa in the last four games (and even stayed on twice). We’ll see.”
The reason?
Ruggeri has been playing regularly recently since the injury to Ian Maatsen. He has been in fine form too and earned a late call-up for Gli Azzurri. He eventually made his debut for the Italy national team in a UEFA Nations League game against Turkey.
It is unclear how he would be used by Emery when the Dutchman returns from the sidelines. There is a chance that they could be fielded in rotation, or the Spaniard would simply see who is in better condition to play.
Thus, La Viola are targeting him again and luring the former Atalanta man to leave Villa Park. They appear to be looking for a senior figure in the left-back position to strengthen their squad, while their main choice, Fabiano Parisi, is currently injured as well. He has suffered an ACL knee injury and could be unavailable until December. At the moment, Paolo Vanoli’s men can only rely on the young left-back, Victor Valdepenas. The 19-year-old Spanish youngster has featured in four games in the Italian top flight so far.
Will Aston Villa release him?
The 24-year-old left-back has enjoyed his early rise at Bodymoor Heath. Playing regularly following Maatsen’s injury, plus earning a national team call-up, is a dream start for him in the 2026/27 campaign. He even managed to feature in two games for Gli Azzurri during the current international break.
Thus, Villa might not be willing to let him leave. Emery might be utilising him more often than expected, as squad depth is important. Ruggeri can be rotated in the second half of the season with the increasing number of fixtures and pressure to consistently deliver positive results.
The only possible scenario for Ruggeri to leave Villa Park is if he drops down the pecking order following a below-par run of form. Villa could loan him out and hunt for another option in the market. Fiorentina’s concrete offer on the table to meet Villa’s demands could be on the cards too.
