Report: Aston Villa are closing in on signing tough tackling £6m player

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Aston Villa manager Unai Emery is close to making his first signing of the January window, with a deal for Alex Moreno edging ever closer.

According to The Sun, Villa have made their move for Moreno and his current club, Real Betis, are already on the hunt to sign a replacement for him. The 29-year-old left-back is described in The Sun’s report as being one of the best uncapped full-backs in Spain.

Moreno is set to arrive at Villa Park for a fee of around £15m, meaning Betis make a tidy profit on the £6m they paid for him back in 2019.

Villa boss Emery is set to be backed by the owners in January after a fairly positive start to life as boss. Emery saw his team snatch a 1-1 draw in midweek against Wolves in a game that could and should have been won by Leon Bailey.

Emery is thought to be a big fan of Moreno, who has made in excess of 150 appearances in La Liga. Described by Whoscored as a player who likes to tackle and dribble, Emery will hope Moreno can add an attacking threat from full-back.

TBR’s View: Villa need new faces with quality

On paper, Moreno appears to tick plenty of boxes. He’s 29, so is experienced enough to come into the club and settle in without too much trouble.

Beyond that, he has played enough games at a high level for a big club to know what Villa will expect. He’ll also be acutely aware of Emery, and should be keen to impress.

At £15m, this is a smart signing for Villa. They needed new faces in the door but crucially, they needed players who can improve the team immediately. On the surface of things, Alex Moreno would appear to do that for Villa.