Joao Palhinha expected in England today to finalise Aston Villa move | OneFootball

Portuguese international midfielder Joao Palhinha is expected to arrive in England today to finalise a summer move to Aston Villa.

Villa have acted swiftly to secure the experienced anchor, aiming further to bolster Unai Emery’s midfield ahead of the new campaign.

The Europa League champions recently announced the club-record signing of Swiss midfield prodigy Johan Manzambi from Freiburg, and are close to securing Joao Gomes from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Rather than resting on their laurels, Villa quickly accelerated talks to bring in Palhinha on a structured season-long loan, aiming to add proven Premier League quality alongside their high-profile youth investment.

For Palhinha, a move to Villa brings an end to a brief period of career uncertainty. The ‘reliable’ 31-year-old spent last season on loan at Tottenham Hotspur, where he became an important figure under Roberto De Zerbi, famously scoring the match-winner against Everton on the final day to help preserve Spurs’ Premier League status.

However, Tottenham ultimately opted against a permanent deal, instead investing heavily in a midfield double swoop for Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes.

With Palhinha not in Bayern Munich’s long-term plans, the Bundesliga club have been actively seeking to get his wages off the books.

While Benfica and Sporting CP held tentative talks about a return to Lisbon, Aston Villa now appear to have won the race for his signature.

Villa’s urgent need for midfield reinforcements follows the departure of Youri Tielemans to Manchester United and Amadou Onana’s long-term injury, sustained on international duty with Belgium at the World Cup.