Villa in talks with Club Brugge for defender Ordonez

Aston Villa are in talks to sign Club Brugge central defender Joel Ordonez, following a failed attempt to sign Southampton's Taylor Harwood-Bellis. The Premier League side, who recently sold England defender Ezri Konsa to Arsenal, are keen to bolster their squad before the transfer deadline on September 1. Club Brugge, the Belgian Pro League club where Ordonez currently plays, is demanding a minimum £40m fee for the 22-year-old Ecuador international.

Ordonez, who represented his country at the 2022 World Cup, has made 124 appearances for Club Brugge since joining in 2022 from Independiente del Valle. Villa had previously targeted Harwood-Bellis, but the gap in valuation between them and Southampton proved too wide after an £18m offer was rejected. The outcome of the Ordonez transfer remains uncertain at this stage, but for now, Aston Villa have shifted their focus to other potential signings.

The newly-minted side suffered their opening match defeat of the season, a 4-0 loss to Brighton, and have lost several key players this season, including Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne and Konsa. The future of striker Ollie Watkins remains unclear, as he is a target for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.