Sources: Aston Villa told £40m Jean-Philippe Mateta offer will be accepted
Crystal Palace have set a £40million price tag on Jean-Philippe Mateta in an attempt to ward off interest from Aston Villa and Juventus this month.
Oliver Glasner recently dismissed claims that the 28-year-old has asked to leave, or that Juventus had made an opening bid, but would not rule out his departure.
As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Transfer Insider podcast, Crystal Palace are reluctant to lose their top goalscorer mid-way through the season.
That comes especially following the departure of their captain Marc Guehi, who made a £20million move to Man City earlier this month.
The Eagles hope placing a lofty asking price on Mateta will ward off interest until the January transfer window ends, as they would prefer to sell him in the summer.
Crystal Palace make Jean-Philippe Mateta transfer plan
Football Insider revealed on 23 January that Crystal Palace are reluctant to lose Mateta and hope to keep him until the end of the season.
Villa have been long-term admirers of the striker, having initially considered a move during the summer transfer window as they aim to bolster their squad up front.
Ollie Watkins is currently their only attacking option, although a new arrival is believed to be imminent, but Mateta’s asking price may deter their interest.
Speaking on the Transfer Insider podcast, I explained: “Look, it’s a difficult one for Crystal Palace right now, they’ve had so much upheaval in the last couple of weeks.
“They’ve turned down a loan with an obligation from Juventus that didn’t suit Crystal Palace, and now Aston Villa are sniffing around seeing if there’s a possibility of it being done as well.
“It’d have to be a huge fee, you’re probably looking at around 40 million which is lower because of his contract situation.
“I think Palace will do everything they can to try keep hold of the player and then they’ll have to reassess the situation in the summer.
“It looks more and more likely that Mateta will leave Palace, but they will try and persuade him to stay until the summer and then they’ll open the door for the Frenchman to leave the club.
“I just think right now with everything that’s gone on at Palace, they can’t really afford to let their top goalscorer leave as well.”
Aston Villa set to complete Tammy Abraham deal
Villa’s interest in Mateta may be put on hold until the summer as they look set to announce their latest attacking signing in the next few days.
Football Insider revealed on 25 January that Tammy Abraham is close to joining Aston Villa and expect to announce his arrival in due course.
Beskitas activated their £11million option to buy the striker, with Aston Villa to pay the Turkish outfit £18million to ensure the deal is beneficial to all parties.
While that deal proved more complicated than many would have liked, with Unai Emery having hoped to bring in a striker earlier this month, it is now close to completion.
During negotiations, Villa were handed a boost in the knowledge that all sides were keen to reach an agreement quickly, with the player pushing for the move.
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