England ace edges close to Aston Villa return as Manchester City icon emerges as shock contender for Bayern Munich job
The latest football headlines, including updates from Aston Villa and Burnley
Aston Villa are edging closer to a deal to re-sign England midfielder Ross Barkley as Unai Emery’s side look to bolster their squad ahead of their Champions League campaign.
Barkley joined Aston Villa on a loan deal from Chelsea in 2020/21 and scored three times in 24 appearances as the West Midland outfit recorded an 11th place finish.
The 30-year-old, capped by England 33 times, excelled for Luton Town after joining the Hatters on a free transfer from Nice in the summer.
The Hatters, who were relegated from the Premier League have not disclosed the length of Barkley’s contract, but reports claim that the deal runs until the end of next season.
The former Everton starlet has already spoken of his desire to remain in the top-flight and claims that he still believes he can do a job in the elite European competitions.
He is quoted by the Guardian as saying: “I want to play in the Premier League. I want to play in Europe again … I feel like for the next three years maybe I’ll still be in my prime years.”
The arrival of Barkley would represent shrewd business for an Aston Villa team that will need to bolster their squad depth as they compete in the Champions League for the first time since 1983.
Barkley has played in the Europa League with Everton and the Champions League with Chelsea and in recent times has shown signs of returning to his best after difficulties with injuries.
The 30-year-old was compared to Paul Gascoigne and Michael Ballack by ex-Everton boss Roberto Martinez and when at his best could prove good competition for the likes of John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Jacob Ramsey and Youri Tielemans if a deal is successful.
Vincent Kompany emerges as shock contender for Bayern Munich job
Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich have held concrete talks with Vincent Kompany over the managerial vacancy at the Allianz Arena, according to reports from Sky Sports Germany.
Kompany suffered relegation with Burnley this season, but was previously praised for leading the Clarets to the Championship title with an incredible 101 points. He also plays a possession based attacking brand of football which has been lauded despite Burnley’s poor finish.
The Belgian, who spent time in the Bundesliga as a player with Hamburger, is rated highly by the Bayern Munich hierarchy who are keen to reclaim the Bundesliga title from Bayer Leverkusen after a third place finish last term under Thomas Tuchel - the club’s lowest finish since 2011.
The move would see the former Manchester City and Belgium captain link up with former team mate Leroy Sane as well as England captain and all-time record goalscorer Harry Kane who joined the German giants last stummer.