According to the latest reports from Daily Star, Aston Villa have reportedly made a bid of £11m for defender Christian Luyindama, just days after he signed permanently for Galatasaray. Luyindama is said to be on Dean Smith’s radar for quite some time, and it seems like the club haven’t given up the chase for him. This is despite the fact that the Turkish heavyweights recently secured his signature.
Galatasaray completed the signing of the defender from Standard Liege for £4.6m, and now they can more than double their money if latest reports of Villa’s bid for £11m is accurate. Luyindama played a part in the Congo national team in the recently concluded Africa Cup of Nations, and Smith was said to be in Egypt to check the defender from close quarters. The 25-year-old had spent the second half of the last season on loan with Galatasaray.
Villa are certainly not messing around in the transfer market as they have now spent well over £100m in this window and their shopping spree is still going on.
Does Villa need centre backs?
The club has already brought in as many as four centre backs in this transfer window in the form of Tyrone Mings, Kortney Hause, Bjorn Engels and Ezri Konsa. Out of the lot, the club paid a hefty of £20m to acquire Mings from Bournemouth.
The club also has the experienced club captain James Chester available who will likely play bits and pieces role in the Premier League. As things stand, signing a centre back shouldn’t be a necessity for Villa given the money they have already invested in defence.
What can Luyindama bring to the Villa side?
The 25-year-old stands in at 6ft 3inches, and he is a reliable and powerful centre back option. There is no doubt to us that he could be easily worth £11m in today’s market, and it remains to be seen whether Galatasaray will jump in to make a quick profit.
The centre back is also capable of playing as a defensive midfielder. His strength and physicality would make him a tailor-made signing to take up the challenges of the Premier league. The Congolese defender is strong in the air and has a decent pace for a man of such frame.
The centre back made 47 appearances in all competitions last season (for Standard Liege and Galatasaray combined) and contributed with five goals and two assists.
Ability wise, Luyindama has the potential to be a good signing for Villa, and once he settles in, he can be a first choice defender as well. However, the club already has several options, so it really depends on how Smith sees this signing.
