Aston Villa reach verbal agreement to sign Luton Town’s Ross Barkley for £5m | OneFootball

As per Fabrizio Romano, Aston Villa have reached a verbal agreement with Luton Town over the signing of Ross Barkley.

The fee is understood to be around £5 million, with just the medical tests and the player’s formal signature needed before the deal is completed.

The move would see Barkley return for a second spell at Villa Park following his year-long loan in the 2020/21 season, where he made 18 Premier League starts under Dean Smith – the most he’s managed in any season since 2016/17, aside from the most recent campaign with Luton.

After an underwhelming four-and-a-half years at Chelsea and a largely unremarkable season at OGC Nice in 2022, the 30-year-old joined Rob Edwards’ newly-promoted side on a free transfer last August in hopes of revitalizing his career.

Barkley did so too, playing an influential role in the The Hatters’ valiant fight for survival. In his 30 league starts, the 33-time capped England international contributed five goals and four assists, whilst making more shot-creating actions, successful take-ons, ball recoveries, and passes than any of his teammates, as per Fbref.

As such, Barkley will be a valuable addition to Unai Emery’s side, who are looking to bolster their squad as they prepare for in the Champions League football for the first time since the 1982-83 season, when it was then named the European Cup.

Travis Levison | Get Football