Villa manager Unai Emery stated yesterday that Philogene’s £20 million transfer to the Blues was a must for his
team to complete the arrival of Dutch international Donyell Malen.
Although the move has not yet been verified, Philogene, 22, and his representative were seen at Milsoms Kesgrave
Hall, which is near the Blues’ Playford Road training facility, yesterday evening when the announcement was
made.
During his pre-game press conference, McKenna was asked about the present state of affairs, deviating from his
custom of keeping his mouth shut on players who are with other clubs.
During his pre-game press conference, McKenna was asked about the present state of affairs, deviating from his
custom of keeping his mouth shut on players who are with other clubs.
“I’ll nearly always take the approach of not speaking about another team’s player, but I think in this case it’s fair to
say a couple of things because they’ve publicly said that he might be a player who’s leaving,” he said.
“So, of course, Jaden’s a player we are talking to, he’s a player that we like, who we’ve tried to bring to the club in
previous windows and we think he’s got qualities to really fit in here. So, if it’s possible to bring him to the club,
we’d like to do so.
“I think what’s really important in all this is that Jaden is really keen to come to the football club. I think it’s been a
slightly longer process than we would have wanted, but it’s been steadfast within all that Jaden believes in the
project here.
“He has shown a desire to come here, not just now but in the summer as well. It’s pretty well known that we tried
to bring Jaden to the football club in the summer and amongst having the options of quite a lot of well-established
Premier League clubs, his expressed desire was to come here.
“It was something that we tried to do in the end, but it wasn’t possible with the contractual situation with Aston
Villa, and he went back to his previous club.
“He’s shown a good desire to be here through the last couple of windows. He’s a player that we know well, he’s a
player that we like and we’d like to bring to the football club.
“It’s a complicated deal for the football club to do because he’s a young player who’s just signed a five-year contract
with Aston Villa in the summer, so that’s not an easy deal for Ipswich Town to do. Aston Villa have to get the best
deal possible for their club.
“The player’s representatives have to get the best deal and make sure the security is right for the player. And for us,
it’s very important that every deal we do is right for the now but also helps the progression of the football club in
the longer term, and also protects the football club in the longer term. So, that’s a pretty complicated deal to do.
“I think people are working pretty hard on it. I think there’s been some progress today. If all those things can
match up, then he’s a player that we’d like to have at the club. It’s not quite completed yet, but I think things are
progressing pretty well and, as I say, if it can be completed then he’s a player we’d be happy to have.”
Quizzed on whether he’s happy to allow transfer negotiations go to the wire or whether he sets his own deadlines,
McKenna said: “I think every situation is different. You want to get it done as early as possible, and you’re really
conscious that, especially in the Premier League.
“Compared to the Championship, there are not that many games, relatively speaking. There are 18 games left and
by Monday, there’ll be 16 games left.
Read more news:https://sportupdates.co.uk/
Leave a Reply