Aston Villa set to sign Barcelona sporting director Mateu Alemany

Reports have emerged that Aston Villa have reached a full agreement with Mateu Alemany to join the Birmingham-based club in a senior directorial position from the 2023/24 season.

Barcelona released a club statement on Tuesday confirming that Alemany will leave the club on June 30, 2023. The Catalan club confirmed that he contacted Barcelona president Joan Laporta and informed him that he is leaving to pursue “a new professional project.”

The Spaniard has been the director of football at Barcelona since 2021 but is set to leave the club a year before his contract ends. He will only leave after the end of the 2023/24 summer transfer window due to commitments he made to the club.

Alemany still has a lot of work to do at Barcelona regarding transfers and contracts of players before he can join Villa at the end of the summer. He is still expected to supervise the 2023/24 summer transfer window for the Spanish giants which may even involve finding a way to bring Leo Messi back to the club.

He was the man credited with bringing the likes of Raphinha and Ferran Torres to the club while also juggling with the club’s turbulent financial situation. He has previously held the position of Club President at RDC Mallorca and General Director at Valencia CF.

Also Read: Ferran Torres linked with Premier League sides as Barca consider sale

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has reported that Alemany will work directly with the manager Unai Emery and is already targeting players from La Liga and more.

It is also being reported that Alemany is already considering which players he would like to sign at Aston Villa from Barcelona. Spanish media outlet Mundo Deportivo claim that centre-back Andreas Christensen is a big name on Alemany’s list of targets.

The ambitious Villa owners have spent millions of pounds on the club since taking over in 2018. They brought in Unai Emery in November under whom Villa have gone from relegation candidates to European contenders within a span of six months.

Villa currently sit at 8th in the Premier League having won 6 out of their last 10 matches. They have only failed to score in two Premier League fixtures since the change in management at the start of November.

Unai Emery said on Friday: “Mateu has experience, he has worked at a high level. If he’s coming here to Villa, because it is a possibility, it will be a great opportunity to create a structure with him.”

Under the stewardship of Emery and Alemany, the ownership would be hoping to attract some of the biggest talents around Europe and restore the glory days at Villa Park.