Aston Villa have also made a bid to sign an "outstanding" player alongside left-back Ian Maatsen.
Maatsen to sign for Aston Villa
NSWE and Monchi appear to be closing in on their first marquee signing of the summer, with Chelsea full-back Maatsen on course to move to the Midlands.
The 22-year-old spent last season out on loan with Borussia Dortmund, helping them to the Champions League final. The Bundesliga giants had a chance to sign the Netherlands international for around £35m but have passed up on their option to buy.
Villa have swooped in, agreeing to pay slightly more than the £35m figure, with personal terms in place on a six-year deal at Villa Park.
It is believed that Champions League football with Unai Emery’s side has been seen as tempting for Maatsen, who looks set to battle it out with Lucas Digne and Alex Moreno for a regular starting spot.
After Maatsen, there are likely to be further arrivals, with Ross Barkley’s permanent move to the club expected to be announced next month, whereas Villa could still land some Juventus players in a swap deal for Douglas Luiz.
Alongside Luiz’s departure, Jhon Duran has been heavily linked with Chelsea, whereas young midfielder Tim Iroegbunam is set to join Everton. However, in response, Villa are looking to sign one of the Toffees’ youngsters.
Aston Villa make Lewis Dobbin bid
According to Sky Sports in the last 48 hours, who have been reporting on Maatsen’s pending move to the Midlands, Aston Villa have also made an offer to sign Lewis Dobbin from Everton.
They don’t say how much an offer is worth for the striker but deals for Iroegbunam and Dobbin should help both Villa and Everton when it comes to PSR.
Dobbin, who is 21 years of age, made 12 Premier League appearances and scored one goal last season. Prior to that, the forward spent the 2022/23 season out on loan with Derby County, making more than 50 senior appearances for the Rams.
He earned praise from manager Paul Warne during that time, who said: “All the players make mistakes and I’ve got no issue with that, but it’s all about being brave enough to keep doing things and that’s what Dobbs did.
“He did some things outstanding, some things good and some things poor, which was the same with all the players. But it was a good header. I’m being nice if I say headers are not among the best of his attributes but for him to score his first league goal like that and for it to be the winner is a great feeling for the kid.”
Dobbin can play as a left winger, right winger, striker, second striker or attacking midfielder, so it’ll be interesting to see how Emery uses him in the long run, should a transfer go through.