Aston Villa face competition for Joao Felix amidst interest from Liga Portugal club

According to a recent report from ‘Birmingham Live’, Aston Villa is set to face a tough battle in order to sign the Atletico Madrids’ Joao Felix this summer. The Premier League club will have to battle out Liga Portugal side SL Benfica, who reportedly also hold a certain interest in signing Felix, who already played for them at the early stages of his career.

The report had it that, Joao Felix wants a decision on his future by the end of July and is not keen on joining Atletico back after a decent loan spell at FC Barcelona in the 2023-24 season.

Benfica is termed to offer a monetary sum of about €30 million for the Portuguese forward. However, they intend this money to grant them a 50 percent ownership of Felix. If the deal does go through, it is entitled to make the 24-year-old the most expensive signing in the Portuguese club’s history.

On the other hand, as per ‘Dario Sport’, Aston Villa is more likely to offer Atletico Madrid a loan with an obligation to buy Joao Felix after the season ends. It would, however, ensure that the Portugal international is on the same sort of salary as he is used to earning at his current La Liga club. Whether Benfica, or Aston Villa who wins the race for Felix, remains to be seen.

Felix had seven goals and three assists to his name for Barca in the previous La Liga season.