Villa close to £65m move for Chelsea's Jackson

Chelsea has initiated discussions to secure the services of Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, in the final days of the transfer window. Martinez is reportedly keen on the move, especially as his future at Villa has become uncertain following recent events. Initially, the Argentine goalkeeper was negotiating with Juventus, but the deal fell through, resulting in Juventus signing Tottenham's Guglielmo Vicario.

Aston Villa has since signed Zion Suzuki from Parma, who is seen as Unai Emery's preferred choice for the upcoming season. Martinez was absent from Villa's lineup for their opening league match against Brighton on Sunday. According to The Athletic, the 33-year-old is now engaged in transfer negotiations with Chelsea. Earlier this window, Chelsea were linked with Martinez, but seemed comfortable with Robert Sanchez and young Mike Penders as their goalkeeping options for the new campaign.

However, Chelsea's interest appears to have rekindled, with ongoing talks between the two clubs ahead of the September 1 transfer deadline. Martinez began his Premier League career at Arsenal before joining Villa in 2020 in search of more regular game time. The Italian goalkeeper has made 256 appearances for Villa and earned the Golden Glove in 2022 after playing a key role in Argentina's World Cup victory in Qatar.

If Martinez leaves Villa, he would join a list of seasoned players to depart Emery's squad, including Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Ezri Konsa, and Lucas Digne, all of whom exited during the summer. For Chelsea, signing Martinez would mean adding another experienced Premier League veteran to their squad, following the signings of Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck earlier this summer.