Aston Villa will think twice about signing Ferran Torres after scenes in Spain vs Cape Verde
Aston Villa will feel they dodged a bullet by not signing Ferran Torres from Barcelona last summer.
The Villans were being heavily linked with the Spain international, who was one of the worst players on the pitch for La Roja against minnows Cabo Verde at Atlanta Stadium on 15 June.
Luis de la Fuente's team dropped points in their opening 2026 World Cup fixture after a 0-0 draw with the West African outfit.
Unai Emery is said to be a big fan of Torres and has wanted to bring the attacker to Villa Park over the last few years, but his performance for Spain may force them to rethink any potential moves in the future.
The versatile forward is coming off one of his best seasons with Barcelona, scoring 16 league goals, but his inconsistency continues to frustrate the Catalan club's supporters.
Torres isn't clinical in front of goal and he once again proved that against Cabo Verde, missing some glorious opportunities to give Spain the lead.
Ferran Torres game in numbers as Spain draw vs Cabo Verde
Torres started for Spain on the right-wing, with Gavi on the left, as De la Fuente dealt with injuries to Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams.
The former Manchester City forward played 81 minutes before being replaced by Dani Olmo, failing to find the back of the net despite recording an xG of 0.89, as per Sofascore.
Torres had four shots against Pedro Leitao Brito's team, with one on target and one hitting the woodwork, and he missed one big opportunity to score.
The Barcelona attacker was wasteful with the ball, failing to complete either of his two dribbles and losing possession 20 times, while also showing no defensive desire, losing all eight of his ground duels.
Former Villa chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider in July 2025 that Emery was looking to sign Torres last summer after speaking to contacts in Spain, but a deal didn't materialise.
Aston Villa should look at another Spain international's summer transfer
Emiliano Martinez looks destined to leave Villa in the summer as speculation around his future continues to grow.
If the Argentina international does end up leaving in the coming weeks, the Villans will arguably need a quality replacement for him and should turn their attention to Unai Simon.
The Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper continues to keep Arsenal's David Raya out of Spain's starting lineup and the 29-year-old may be the sort of signing the Lions will need to fill Martinez's possible void at Villa Park.