How much money Coventry City are paying Aston Villa to sign Kaine Kesler-Hayden | OneFootball

Aston Villa defender Kaine Kesler-Hayden is set to join Coventry City in a significant deal for Frank Lampard's side

Coventry City are set to win the race for sought-after Aston Villa defender Kaine Kesler-Hayden, who spent the 2024/25 Championship campaign on loan with Preston North End.

As revealed on Monday morning via X by John Percy of The Telegraph, Kesler-Hayden is poised to arrive in a deal worth around £3.5 million after Coventry managed to beat off reported competition from a clutch of second-tier rivals including the likes of Middlesbrough and freshly-relegated Southampton.

A product of the Villa academy system, Kesler-Hayden penned an extended contract in the Second City less than twelve months ago, but recent reports suggested that the right-back was available for transfer before the end of this month, with Unai Emery's side looking to avoid falling foul of Profit and Sustainability regulations.

The 22-year-old will leave Villa Park with only two senior appearances for the club under his belt, having gained a wealth of experience across the EFL in numerous loan spells. Kesler-Hayden enjoyed a breakout 2021/22 campaign on loan with Swindon Town and MK Dons and has spent the last three seasons in the Championship in spells at Huddersfield Town, Plymouth Argyle and most recently Preston North End.

An attack-minded right-back, Kesler-Hayden made a strong impression at Deepdale last time out by clocking up 51 appearances across all competitions and winning the club's Player of the Year award.

Coventry City set to sign Aston Villa's Kaine Kesler-Hayden in £3.5 million deal

According to Percy's aforementioned update, the impending acquisition of Kesler-Hayden will set the Sky Blues back by £3.5 million.

The structure of the deal remains unclear, but given Kesler-Hayden's age, it's likely that the Villains will include some sort of sell-on clause.

Former England youth international Kesler-Hayden is now set to undertake a medical at some point today ahead of the deal's completion, which could represent extremely shrewd business for Coventry in both the short and long-term future.

Frank Lampard has the backing of owner Doug King, who has not shied away from investment in the playing squad since purchasing Coventry in January 2023.

He's looking to hand the former Derby County and Chelsea head coach the backing to go one step further and achieve promotion to the Premier League in 2025/26 after Coventry agonisingly lost out to Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals last term.

Coventry City, Kaine Kesler-Hayden signing may spell doubt over Milan van Ewijk's future

As Coventry close in on something of a marquee early-summer signing, questions have to be asked over Milan van Ewijk's future at the CBS Arena.

The 24-year-old Dutchman has been Coventry's first-choice right-back for the last two campaigns after joining from Eredivisie outfit SC Heerenveen in the summer of 2023. His debut season was impressive, but inconsistency crept in last time out as van Ewijk emerged as a somewhat-divisive figure among supporters.

Notably, his erroneous backpass gifted Eliezer Mayenda's late winner in the first-leg defeat at home to Sunderland, though van Ewijk has still been linked with a move away from Coventry in recent times amid reported interest from Premier League duo Everton and Fulham.

At 24, van Ewijk himself remains an asset who could command a handsome transfer fee, although Kesler-Hayden's arrival could push him down the pecking order and encourage the Sky Blues to cash in.