Aston Villa will be looking to sell French midfielder Morgan Sanson in the summer transfer window as Steven Gerrard aims to rejig his playing squad.
What’s the word?
According to former Villa striker Kevin Phillips, who was speaking to Football Insider, the 27-year-old midfielder will “definitely” leave the side in the upcoming summer transfer window, while suggesting that the manager will be "desperate" to sell him.
The club will reportedly accept bids around the £10m mark as they aim to cut their losses on the Frenchman.
Gerrard is desperate to sell
Gerrard is having a mixed spell at Villa so far since his arrival from Rangers in mid-November. A solid start was disrupted by a tough period over Christmas and New year, and while relegation was never really a threat, the former England captain will want to stamp his authority on the side ahead of an important campaign.
The manager will be desperate to sell Sanson, especially if a bid is going to be made on Philippe Coutinho and funds will need to be raised.
Unfortunately, it just hasn’t worked out for the midfielder at Villa Park since his arrival from Marseille in January 2021.
He has only featured in 21 matches for Villa during this underwhelming stint and after an injury in September, Dean Smith labelled it a “frustrating” time for the Frenchman.
During that time, he has only ever started six league games and has consistently underperformed, achieving a WhoScored average match rating of just 6.34 this term.
Gerrard and the club's ownership, NSWE, will be hoping to cut their losses and gather the majority of the £16m transfer fee back that was spent on the player as the manager decides whether to plot a bid for loan star Coutinho.
With Villa's most important transfer window fast approaching, recruitment will need to be spot on if Gerrard aims to push the side into the European spots next season and justify the decision to hire him in the first place.
If he has a slow start, then the board might have a decision to make.