Liverpool suffer transfer blow as Aston Villa agree £38m package for midfield target
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Liverpool are set to miss out on the signature of Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes, with transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reporting that Aston Villa have agreed a £38m deal with their rivals in the Midlands.🚨🟣🔵 João Gomes to Aston Villa, here we go! Verbal agreement in place at €40m fee plus €5m add-ons.Wolves accept £38m package and authorize medical for João Gomes to #AVFC.Gomes left training to travel and complete move, as @johntownley11 reported. pic.twitter.com/282urwIei2— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 16, 2026With Villa having to endure the loss of Amadou Onana to knee ligament injury that occurred at the World Cup, alongside the departure of seasoned Belgian Youri Tielemans to Manchester United, it is no surprise that the club were actively scouting for midfield options ahead of the upcoming season.The 25-year-old midfielder has accumulated Premier League experience for Wolves over the past three seasons, and was undoubtedly one of the side’s better players in a lacklustre campaign that saw them relegated to the Championship.Ahead of the World Cup, the Brazilian midfielder saw himself snubbed by Carlo Ancelotti despite being included in the preliminary squad for the tournament.
The Brazil head coach opted instead for experience with likes of Casemiro and Fabinho, the latter a name that Liverpool allowed to leave multiple seasons ago after he was judged as seemingly not up to scratch for Premier League football any longer.Argentina v Brazil - FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifier | Daniel Jayo/GettyImagesPrior to the Villa swoop, Gomes had been expected to move to sign with Atletico Madrid before the Spanish club saw their head turned by Sporting midfielder Morten Hjulmand, signed for a similarly affordable price to the offer that Villa have reportedly agreed with the Wolves man.After any chance of a move to Spain broke down, Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte claimed that both Liverpool and Manchester United had enquired about the midfielder, with both clubs looking to make additions to their midfield options.With Andoni Iraola not shy to announce that the club requires assessment and activity in the transfer window, the signing of a defensive midfielder to break up play and allow both Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister the freedom to play more creatively could be considered a necessity. Off the back of a poor season for Mac Allister, some coverage for defensive duties in midfield is much needed.That motion becomes particularly poignant if Liverpool are to lose Curtis Jones, a departure that would leave Liverpool with only five senior midfielders at the club, including Dominik Szoboszlai who may be required to cover at full-back with the injury to Conor Bradley.Liverpool v Brentford - Premier League | Jack Thomas/GettyImagesOther Premier league sides have been actively completing their own midfield signings, such as Manchester United with Andrey Santos and Tielemans, Manchester City’s record-breaking signing of Elliott Anderson and Tottenham Hotspur’s addition of Sandro Tonali to their ranks.
If Liverpool's reported interested in the Wolves midfielder was true and culminated in a bargain swoop from a direct Premier league rival, a team that finished ahead of them last season, Iraola can only be frustrated by the lack of an authoritative move.The Villa newcomer would’ve suited the aggressive style of play that Iraola wants to authorise, known for winning the ball back in the central areas of the pitch with urgency and coming out on top in moments of contested possession.Yet, he is a slightly one-dimensional number 6 in that he has been committed to defensive actions and regressive passes towards the defensive line, leaving a reliance on the back four to create line-breaking passes forward.Nevertheless, Liverpool undoubtedly must improve their midfield depth, and missing out on a reliable defender in the middle of the park is a blow for the Reds.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow