Aston Villa are reportedly ‘best positioned’ to sign Villarreal defender Pau Torres with the Bayern Munich target keen on an Unai Emery reunion in the Premier League.
Such claims come from El Periodico di Mediterraneo. A publication based on Spain’s Castellon coast, and one with a detailed knowledge of all things Villarreal.
In short, they are worth listening to as speculation linking Pau Torres with Aston Villa continues to swirl.
Villa, the report says, are ready to ‘accelerate’ their pursuit of the Spain international centre-half, and will make a ‘considerable offer’ to reunite him with a coach who guided Villarreal to the brink of the Champions League final a year ago.
Emery called Torres an ‘amazing’ talent during their time together at the Estadio de la Ceramica.
And, with just one year left on his contract, Villarreal are reportedly willing to let Torres leave for around half of his £50 million release clause. Villarreal are aware of Aston Villa’s interest; the Birmingham giants ‘best positioned’ to sign one of Europe’s most promising centre-halves despite interest from the likes of Bayern Munich and Juventus.
Aston Villa lead Pau Torres race ahead of Bayern Munich
Bayern opened talks with Torres earlier this month. The Bundesliga champions could also step up their pursuit with Lucas Hernandez on his way to Paris Saint-Germain, though the chance to work with Emery again in the Premier League is understood to appeal greatly to a defender who turned down Tottenham Hotspur’s advances back in 2021.
“Pau Torres is an amazing player,” the former Arsenal boss once told Football London of Torres.
“I think he’s top. I’ve been a coach at Sevilla, PSG, Arsenal and I’ve never seen a centre-back like Pau Torres.
“I think he’s going to play at the highest level. He’s playing now in the national team, but he can play in the top teams in Europe very soon.”
Torres is a left-footed centre-half renowned for his pinpoint passing range. His arrival may raise questions over the futures of Diego Carlos and captain Tyrone Mings. Both of whom are more comfortable on the left of a back-four.
