Aston Villa have completed the signing of Freddie Lawrie from Port Vale as their investment in the club’s academy continues

Aston Villa has finalized the acquisition of Port Vale youngster Freddie Lawrie after the two clubs agreed on a compensation deal. Lawrie has been playing for Vale’s under-15s as a central midfielder and has piqued the curiosity of several teams, but he will continue to grow with Villa.

Since taking over NSWE in 2018, the Lions have been very active in the academy, bringing in many youngsters from other clubs and improving the staffing structure. There are other players on the verge of making the first team, notably Omari Kellyman, who joined the club from Derby County last year.

Lawrie will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of a host of previous academy success stories at Villa; Jack Grealish, Aaron Ramsey, Cameron Archer and Carney Chukwuemeka have all moved elsewhere within the Premier League in recent years and Jacob Ramsey remains a key midfielder for Unai Emery.

Vale’s head of academy Will Ryder said: “This is an unbelievable opportunity for Freddie, he is now going to get the opportunity to go to a category one club and be in and around an Premier League environment as he continues his development.

“We’re extremely proud of Freddie and the way he has handled this whole process and has shown patience and professionalism beyond his years whilst we have been working through the correct protocols with the Premier League to ensure this move his successful for him.

“I’d like to thank Aston Villa, specifically Steve Hopcroft and Mark Harrison who made the conversations honest, open and transparent which meant it was all done in a positive manner which means a fair agreement for both clubs was reached. We’d like to wish Freddie all of the best with this move and we will be keeping an eye on his development over the years.”