According to multiple sources, Aston Villa determinedly stepped into the race for Paris Saint-Germain talent Ibrahim Mbaye and won it. The agreement between the two clubs has been reached at around €55 million, and the player has given his consent to the move.

The news will have come as a blow to Liverpool, who had personal terms agreed with Mbaye for a while. They reportedly wanted to sign him as a part of a package deal together with Bradley Barcola, but PSG insisted on separating the two pieces of business and quoted a significantly bigger price for Mbaye than the one they agreed to sell to Aston Villa for. Liverpool are on the verge of completing the Barcola transfer, but Mbaye is now on his way to Villa Park, leaving them to look elsewhere for another winger that head coach Andoni Iraola wants.

Villa were looking to strengthen their attacking ranks too, following the sales of Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins, and having tried to sign Rafael Leao from AC Milan, they eventually gave up and moved for Mbaye instead. And while signing Leao would have meant obtaining a player for today, 18-year-old Mbaye obviously means an investment in the future.