Aston Villa Transfer News: Villa sent Real Madrid bold bid before deadline

Aston Villa reportedly approached Real Madrid for one of their star players before the transfer deadline.

Unai Emery’s side were busy during the winter window, with Tammy Abraham and Douglas Luiz sealing returns to Villa Park, while Donyell Malen was sold to Roma.

Summer signing Evan Guessand was loaned out to Crystal Palace as Emery reshaped his squad as they aim to, at the very least, consolidate their position in the top three of the Premier League table.

But if they had their way, Villa could have welcomed another star with English top-flight experience to bolster their ranks.

Spanish outlet Defensa Central named Aston Villa and Premier League rivals Newcastle United as keen admirers of centre-back Dean Huijsen.

The Spain international only joined Real Madrid in the summer, but since then, he has battled injuries, an erroneous sending-off, a high-profile managerial change and criticism of his performances.

This comes after he shone in the Premier League for Bournemouth, where he earned his big-money move to the Santiago Bernabeu.

As for the interest from Villa and Newcastle, Fichajes went a step further, stating that the English duo had sent Real Madrid ‘formal offers’ for the defender of around €40m (£34.5m).

Unfortunately, Real Madrid, who spent £50m for his services in May 2025, appear to have no intention of letting him go, with Los Blancos seeing him as an integral part of their long-term future.

It is thought that Madrid value Huijsen at around €70m (£60.4m), suggesting that Villa are way off what could be regarded as a suitable offer.

However, there appears to be little appetite, if any, for the Spanish giants to sanction the sale of one of their recent marquee arrivals – even for a profit.

Fichajes’ report suggests nonetheless that Villa, nor Newcastle, are willing to give up on Huijsen, as though they are aware that the circumstances regarding Huijsen’s status in Spain could change.

Given they recently parted with manager Xabi Alonso and are yet to hire his replacement, you could argue that Huijsen’s standing within the first team hangs in the balance until a successor comes in and implements his philosophy in the Spanish capital.

Though given that there appears to be great internal support for Huijsen amid a tumultuous first campaign, the odds aren’t exactly in Villa’s favour of changing Real Madrid’s minds once the summer window comes around.

Graduated in Sport Journalism (BA) with first-class honours from the University of Brighton and has since had bylines in The Times, sports business publication SportsPro, Football FanCast and The Gooner fanzine.

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