Aston Villa targeting elite teenage winger from Champions League winners PSG: report

Aston Villa’s summer transfer plans are coming into view and the impact of success or failure in the Champions League chase is abundantly clear

Villa will look to strengthen during the transfer window and it’s expected that some significant departures will also be on the cards. The remaining games in the Premier League and Europa League will make a huge difference to their capabilities in the market.

Either way, there will need to be some creative scouting and talent identification in order to give Villa an edge. As the club’s president of football operations, the fresh thinking alongside manager Unai Emery will be sought from Roberto Olabe in his first summer window.

Villa targeting PSG teenager Ibrahim Mbaye

There might well be some desire to compete for more obvious targets too, especially at the younger end of the scale. Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Ibrahim Mbaye is reportedly on the radar and not for the first time.

“The 18-year-old midfielder was of interest to Unai Emery during the January window but a move was never close to materialising,” writes Matt Maher for Express & Star.

“Villa could now rekindle their interest in the summer should they succeed in qualifying for next season’s Champions League.”

Mbaye is a French-born full Senegalese international, so it’s difficult to tell for the time being whether or not he can be classified as an Africa Cup of Nations winner. His club achievements are easier to define: in 2024-25, he was part of a treble-winning PSG team and made his first nine Ligue 1 appearances on the way to the title.

Villa’s summer transfer window puzzle

Luis Enrique named Mbaye on the bench for eight Champions League matches. Curiously, those eight matches were the final against Inter Milan and all seven meetings with English opposition.

There’s a lot of competition for a young winger at the Parc des Princes, and Mbaye has demonstrated his worth enough to start nine games in the league this season. It would be an ambitious move from Villa to say the least and there would be plenty of competition.

The summer could be another difficult one for Villa and the challenge facing Olabe and the football department is a significant one.

At best, Villa make the Champions League and have to navigate a managed departure or two and start to address the overall age of the squad. At worst, they’ll really regret not hitting their targets this season.

If the signings of Alysson and Brian Madjo in January are any indication, a greater focus on long-term development is at least a part of the club’s recruitment strategy. Transfer planning must range beyond aiming for short-term success precisely because that success is difficult to come by and gets more important with every big investment.

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