An update has emerged on Aston Villa's pursuit of Manchester United centre-back Axel Tuanzebe... 

What's the talk?

According to The Telegraph, Aston Villa are ready to pursue a permanent deal for Manchester United centre-back Axel Tuanzebe. The defender has one year left on his contract at Old Trafford and Villa would like to snap him up this month.

This comes after reports earlier this week that the Red Devils were demanding a £5m loan fee for the England under-21 international, with Villa and Newcastle keen to take him.

Fans will be delighted

Aston Villa fans will be delighted by the club's decision to pursue Tuanzebe on a permanent basis. The reports of United wanting a £5m loan fee were concerning as that would have been a huge chunk of change for the Villans to throw at a loan signing.

They would essentially be paying £5m to develop another team's player for a year, when they could have put that money towards a signing of their own, one who they could keep for the long term.

Hopefully, that is what they are now doing with Tuanzebe by looking to get him from United on a multi-year contract, although there is no specific figure mentioned in terms of a transfer fee.

He could be a solid addition to Villa's squad. He has already shown glimpses of his quality in Manchester, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer lavishing praise on the defender and hailing him as a great leader, following his display against PSG in the Champions League last year.

The Norwegian said: "Axel's a tremendous defender, a great leader. He's come through the academy and we've known for years that he's going to be a top player for us and he's got the character and the attitude that a Man United player should have.

Solskjaer added: "Sometimes you’ll get in a foot race with Mbappe and you have to run with him and we know Axel’s qualities, he’s a top defender."

If Villa can land the £38k-per-week enforcer on a permanent deal, they could aid his long-term development and increase his value. This means that they would be adding a solid player to the squad now, whilst also having the potential for him to improve and potentially be worth selling on for a healthy profit in the future.

Therefore, Villa supporters will be happy that the club are opting against a loan move for Tuanzebe at the quoted figure and that they are now trying for a permanent deal. Hopefully, Johan Lange can get it over the line and Dean Smith will be able to work with the young defender once again.

AND in other news, Villa must seal deal for "outstanding" £75k-p/w beast, he's better than Luiz...