Aston Villa 'nearing £50m deal' to beat Arsenal & Bayern Munich to Premier League star

Aston Villa are closing in on a deal to sign Everton midfielder Amadou Onana, a report has revealed.

Onana, 22, has been heavily linked with the majority of Europe's elite sides over the past 12 months, with both Arsenal and Bayern Munich touted as serious suitors for the Belgium international during the summer transfer window.

However, according to The Athletic, it is Villa who are set to win the race for Onana's signature after closing in on an agreement worth £50m to take the midfielder to Villa Park.

Personal terms have already been finalised, with Onana said to be keen to link up with Villa boss Unai Emery and test himself in the Champions League next season.

Onana's former employers Lille are due 20% of the profit Everton make from his sale, which stands at roughly £4m.

Villa have been active this summer as they seek to prepare for their Champions League journey next season.

Ross Barkley and Enzo Barrenechea have been brought in to bolster in midfield to fill the void left behind by Douglas Luiz's exit to Juventus - a deal which, alongside Barrenechea, also brought winger Samuel Iling Junior to Villa Park.

Lewis Dobbin has joined from Everton, while Villa have also taken advantage of buy-back clauses to bring in Cameron Archer from Sheffield United and move to the front of the queue for Hull City winger Jaden Philogene.

A new midfielder was still high on Emery's wish list and Villa had been keen on Chelsea's Conor Gallagher, but they have instead opted to move for Onana in his place.

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