Aston Villa may have to sell a first-team player in order to sign Villarreal forward Arnaut Danjuma in January, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Lowdown: Negotiations ongoing

The New Year will present Unai Emery with his first opportunity to bring in some of his own players as he starts to assemble a squad that fits his long-term project.

NSWE are reportedly in negotiations regarding a move for the 25-year-old in the winter market, with there being a £66m release clause included in his contract.

The Spanish giants, however, are prepared to let him go for a bid in the region of £44m according to the same outlet, meaning that he could be set to make a return to the Premier League.

The Latest: Sell to buy

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones admitted that he expects the Villans to be monitoring Danjuma ahead of the winter market but says that a household name would likely have to depart first to make any kind of deal possible.

“He is such a good player that I can believe they will be looking at him.

“But the problem is that a major exit probably does need to happen first for this to open up.”

[web_stories_embed url="https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/aston-villa-latest-updates-5/" title="Aston Villa latest updates!" poster="" width="360" height="600" align="none"]

The Verdict: Coutinho replacement?

The Midlands outfit are believed to be open to selling Philippe Coutinho next month after falling out of favour, so Danjuma could be the perfect replacement should he depart.

The Dutchman has posted 25 goal contributions in 49 La Liga appearances, highlighting how prolific he can be in the final third, not to mention that he’ll already be used to the style of play in England having enjoyed a successful spell at Bournemouth.

Danjuma has been dubbed an ‘exceptional talent’ by Clinton Morrison, and with Unai Emery’s existing connection to Villarreal, a deal could well be on the cards.