Evening transfer news: Aston Villa eye £22.5m-rated 'legend' with 8 career trophies

Aston Villa could try to sign Georginio Wijnaldum just a year after he joined Paris Saint-Germain, according to a report from Calciomercato. 

The 31-year-old signed for PSG last June following the expiry of his Liverpool contract. His honours at Anfield included the 2019/20 Premier League and the 2018/19 Champions League, among eight trophies he has won throughout the course of his career.

The Dutchman may have made 27 appearances for Mauricio Pochettino’s side in all competitions, but he has been limited to 12 Ligue 1 starts and was an unused substitute for the recent Champions League round of 16 victory over Real Madrid.

Wijnaldum admitted in the autumn that he was ‘not completely happy’ with his situation at PSG, although he did say that he would ‘work hard to turn it around’.

The report from Calciomercato stated that Wijnaldum ‘could leave’ the French capital in the upcoming transfer window after only one season at the Parc des Princes.

Atletico Madrid are apparently considering him as a ‘possible reinforcement in midfield’, and Villa are one of three sides who could look to bring him back to the Premier League, along with West Ham United and his former club Newcastle United.

Signing Wijnaldum would feel like a real coup for Villa. After all, this is a player who featured in the 2018/19 Champions League squad of the season after scoring twice in Liverpool’s fabled semi-final comeback against Barcelona. Indeed, Jurgen Klopp considers him an Anfield ‘legend’ given his contribution to their success.

The Athletic‘s Gregg Evans has written of Villa’s intentions to land a defensive midfielder this summer, and while the Dutchman is naturally more of a central midfielder, he has played 38 games in a number 6 role during his