Aston Villa defender Bjorn Engels is no longer in Dean Smith’s plans, with a summer exit now looking likely.
That’s according to a report from VoetbelKrant, cited by Birmingham Live, who claim that Royal Antwerp are in pole position to sign the 26-year-old.
Antwerp, who tried to sign the Belgian in January, are thought to be at the front of the queue for the centre-back.
Engels’ pricey Villa stint
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Engels, who is on £55,000 per week at Villa Park, has made just 19 appearances in the Midlands following his £7.2m move from Stade Reims in 2019.
That works out at £379,000 per appearance, and it seems as if his disappointing stay in England will come to an end over the next few months.
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Transfer Tavern take
Engels’ Transfermarkt valuation has plummeted from £10.8m to £3.6m over the last 16 months, and a summer exit would certainly seem to be the right decision.
He hasn’t made a Premier League appearance this season, with Smith mainly using Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa as a central defensive partnership.
Kortney Hause is another centre-back who appears to be above Engels in the pecking order, and Villa’s task now is to try and recoup as much of the £7.2m they paid for the Belgian two years ago as they can.
In other news: Many AVFC fans react to transfer update on Jack Grealish, find out more here.
