Napoli, Newcastle, Chelsea and West Ham were also interested in signing Digne; the France defender will undergo a medical on Wednesday; last week Rafa Benitez confirmed the France defender wants to leave Everton
Thursday 13 January 2022 09:21, UK
Aston Villa have agreed a fee with Everton for left-back Lucas Digne worth up to £25m.
It follows several days of negotiations, in which Villa have beaten off interest from Chelsea, Newcastle and West Ham.
Digne is due in Birmingham later on Wednesday to undergo a medical.
The 28-year-old, who has three-and-a-half years remaining on his Everton contract, told the club he wants to depart Goodison Park this month.
Steven Gerrard is set to bring in his second signing as manager following the arrival of his former Liverpool team-mate Philippe Coutinho.
Villa are also interested in signing Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma as he enters the final 18 months of his contract at the Amex Stadium.
Sky Sports News had been told Everton wanted £30m for Digne, one of Rafael Benitez's star players who joined from Barcelona in 2018.
Digne has been out of the Everton side after a much-publicised falling out with Benitez over tactics and addressing the matter last week, their manager confirmed that the defender had told the club he wants to leave.
"He's been very clear," Benitez said. "I want to ask a question to every fan and former players - what Peter Reid would do if a player comes out and says he doesn't want to be there?
"That's it - simple. I've had a couple of conversations with him and he told me what he thought so what do you expect the manager to do when a player is thinking of leaving?"
Everton have already signed Ukraine international Vitaliy Mykolenko as a replacement for Digne.
The Toffees also secured the services of Rangers and Scotland right-back Nathan Patterson in a deal worth £16m earlier in the January window.
So far this season, Digne has played 15 games and scored once for Everton, who are 15th in the table ahead of their clash away at Norwich on Saturday.
Analysis from Sky Sports' Peter Smith...
What will the France international bring to Steven Gerrard's squad?
Digne's fallout with Rafael Benitez has clouded what appear to be his final weeks with the club but over the past three and a half seasons he has been a key player for Everton.
Since he joined in 2018, he has recorded more assists than any other Everton player and led the way for his team in assists and chances created last season.
Everton have signed 22-year-old Vitaliy Mykolenko as a replacement and while the Ukraine international has experience in the Champions League and played at the Euros last summer, he clearly cannot match Digne's quality and experience at this moment in time.
Digne, after all, has over 40 caps for France and has experienced title wins with Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.
It will be his creative stats exciting Aston Villa supporters, though. At 28, Digne is in his prime and at a level where his attacking output ranks among the best by full-backs in the Premier League.
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Who will be on the move in January?
The January transfer window opens on Saturday January 1, 2022 and closes at 11pm on Monday January 31.
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