Aston Villa are keen on signing Atletico Madrid defender Mario Hermoso, according to journalist Rudy Galetti.
What has Galetti said about Hermoso?
Taking to Twitter on Friday morning, Galetti confirmed Villa's stance on Hermoso, including how much the club would be willing to pay to sign the central defender.
Galetti wrote: "Aston Villa is seriously interested in Mario Hermoso. The club is ready to offer around €30m (£25.5m) to Atleti. Evolving situation."
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Would Hermoso be the most expensive defender in Villa's history?
He would be, surpassing the £20.07m that Villa spent on Tyrone Mings back in 2019.
Hermoso would also go into fifth spot in terms of Villa's most expensive signings ever if this deal gets done. The 26-year-old would go in behind Emiliano Buendia, Danny Ings, Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey on the list, with three of those signings having been made earlier this summer.
What were Hermoso's stats last season?
Hermoso got plenty of game time at Atletico in 2020/21, starting 30 league games for Diego Simeone's men.
According to WhoScored, the 6 foot defender ranked in the top five at Atletico when it came to clearances (63), tackles made (55) and aerial duels won (73).
His performances helped Atletico win their first Spanish title in seven years, as they finished two points clear of local rivals, Real Madrid.
Would he be a good signing for Villa?
Hermoso certainly has an eye-catching resume, having made over 100 appearances in Spain's top-flight, and he is also coming off the back of a career-high after winning La Liga with Atletico earlier this year.
When you factor in that he also has five caps at international level for Spain, it would appear that he would be a fine addition at Villa Park.
On the flip side, Dean Smith's team recently completed the signing of Axel Tuanzebe on a season-long loan deal from Manchester United.
This means that they currently have Mings, Tuanzebe and Ezri Konsa as their centre-half options - three players who look to be capable of performing at the highest level.
Therefore, it could be argued that Villa are already adequately covered at centre-back, and do not need to bring in Hermoso for this position, especially given his hefty price-tag.
Instead, Villa may be better advised bolstering their squad in the middle of the park, which is one area of the team that has not been strengthened so far this summer, rather than spending in excess of £25m on a player for the fourth time in the last two months.