MX23RW : Saturday, April 27 16:09:08| >> :60:212:212:

Transfer rumours: Lenglet to stay at Villa, Soyuncu battle, Meija to Sevilla

Transfer rumours: Lenglet to stay at Villa, Soyuncu battle, Meija to Sevilla
© Reuters
Sports Mole rounds up the latest transfer runours, incuding Clement Lenglet's Aston Villa future, Caglar Soyuncu to Fulham and Mateo Mejia to Sevilla.

On-loan Aston Villa defender Clement Lenglet is reportedly set to remain with the Premier League powerhouses until the end of the season.

The Barcelona-owned centre-back has often struggled to displace Diego Carlos, Pau Torres and Ezri Konsa in the Villans' rearguard, playing just 10 matches in all competitions this season.

Lenglet has earned five starts in the Europa Conference League, but he has featured from the first whistle on just four occasions in the Premier League and did not even make his debut in the top flight until December.

The Frenchman's peripheral standing has led to suggestions that he could call time on his Villa Park stint early amid talk of interest from AC Milan, but according to The Independent, that will not be the case.

The report states that Lenglet will not be leaving Unai Emery's side midway through the campaign, even though all of Lyon, Napoli and Monaco had also registered their interest in his services.

After failing to earn any minutes in Villa's opening 17 Premier League matches, Lenglet has made the first XI in each of their last four top-flight games thanks to Torres's recent ankle injury.

Atletico Madrid's Caglar Soyuncu looks on from the substitutes bench on July 27, 2023© Reuters

While Lenglet will not be on the move this month, one centre-back who could be seeking pastures new is Caglar Soyuncu, who has also been a bit-part player during his time with Atletico Madrid.

The 27-year-old ended a mixed spell at Leicester City over the summer to join Diego Simeone's side, but he has featured on just nine occasions for his new club so far this season.

A groin injury has also hampered Soyuncu's debut season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and his solitary start in La Liga saw him taken off after just 45 minutes in a 2-0 loss to Athletic Bilbao last month.

Despite his long-running contract until 2027, Soyuncu could be on the move in the near future, and A Bola - via Sport Witness - claims that Fenerbahce have taken steps to try to bring him back to Turkey.

However, Soyuncu supposedly has no intention of returning to the Super Lig at this juncture, leaving the door open for Fulham, Porto and Roma to battle for his signature in the coming weeks.

The Portuguese side have apparently positioned themselves at the head of the queue by making enquiries with Soyuncu's representatives and Atletico over a loan deal, which the Rojiblancos would be expected to sanction.

Besiktas' Semih Kilicsoy in action with Club Brugge's Denis Odoi on November 30, 2023© Reuters

At the other end of the field, Wolverhampton Wanderers have supposedly failed with a bid to sign Soyuncu's fellow Turk Semih Kilicsoy.

The 18-year-old striker is enjoying a breakthrough campaign with Super Lig giants Besiktas, scoring six goals in 15 matches across all tournaments, and he has particularly risen to prominence over the past few weeks.

Kilicsoy has struck five goals across Besiktas' last four top-flight matches, and earlier this month, the club agreed a new long-term deal with their teenage starlet until the summer of 2028.

In addition, Kilicsoy has five goals to show from six games for Turkey's Under-19s, netting three times in their most recent Euros qualifiers against Belarus and Greece.

The striker's renewal did not stop Wolves from trying their luck with a winter bid, according to Turkish outlet Haberturk, but the West Midlands club were swiftly rebuffed.

Gary O'Neil's side have lost the in-form Hwang Hee-chan to Asian Cup duty for the next few weeks, while Fabio Silva and Sasa Kalajdzic have joined Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt on loan respectively.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reacts on December 26, 2023© Reuters

However, one young attacker set to depart for pastures new this month is 20-year-old Manchester United winger Mateo Mejia, who is supposedly on the verge of a permanent switch to Sevilla.

The Colombia youth international - who was born in Spain - joined the Red Devils' youth academy from Real Zaragoza in 2019 and has excelled at Under-21 level for the club this season.

Mejia has banked three goals and five assists from nine appearances in the Premier League 2 this season, but he is yet to catch the eye of Erik ten Hag and is still waiting for his first-team debut.

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Mejia - whose contract runs out at the end of the season - is now set to end his Old Trafford spell and join La Liga strugglers Sevilla on a permanent deal.

Romano claims that Sevilla have negotiated a free transfer thanks to Mejia's contract situation, and all the necessary paperwork is expected to go through next week.

Man United are reportedly set to retain a 25% sell-on clause for the 2003-born winger, who earned two caps for Colombia's Under-20s in a pair of friendlies with Peru in December 2022.

ID:533839:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect10100:

Click here for more stories about Clement Lenglet

Click here for more stories about Manchester United

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
 Dominic Solanke puts in his penalty for Bournemouth versus Fulham on December 26, 2023
Read Next:
Transfer rumours: Solanke to Newcastle, Ngonge to Forest, Adams to Wolves
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free daily transfer newsletter! Sent twice a day during the transfer window.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal34245582265677
2Manchester CityMan City33237380324876
3Liverpool35229477364175
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd34166125251154
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle341651374551953
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham351310125665-949
9Chelsea32138116157447
10Wolverhampton WanderersWolves35137154855-746
11Bournemouth34129134960-1145
12Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton331111115254-244
13Fulham35127165155-443
14Crystal Palace351010154557-1240
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton34118153648-1233
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3567224877-2925
19Burnley3559213870-3224
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3537253497-6316


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!