Aston Villa will have to trigger Otavio's release clause soon to sign him from FC Porto, according to Portuguese newspaper Correio de Manha (via Sport Witness). 

The lowdown

The paper claims that Villa's last offer was worth an initial €30million with a further €5million in bonuses (£30.2million in total).

But that will not be enough to land the 27-year-old, who has a release clause of €40million (£34.5million) in his contract.

Otavio is a highly versatile player, predominantly a right winger but also capable of playing on the left and as a number ten.

The Athletic reported in May that another attacking option may be on Steven Gerrard's wish-list for the summer window.

The latest

The report says that Porto will simply point Villa towards the €40m rather than negotiating a sale for a lower price.

They don't feel any pressure to cash in after selling Fabio Vieira to Arsenal and Vitinha to Paris Saint-Germain.

Intriguingly, Otavio's release clause is due to rise by a full €20million on 15 July, so Villa may be under pressure to act fairly quickly.

The verdict

The key question is whether Otavio is worth a full £34.5million. That would, after all, virtually match the record fee Villa paid to sign Emiliano Buendia last summer..

He doesn't score too many goals - he only bagged five last season - but he's an immense creative weapon, based on his tally of 14 assists.

For reference, no Villa player set up more than six goals last season (Buendia and Danny Ings were tied).

Otavio made the Primeira Liga Team of the Season and has been called 'phenomenal' by Portuguese football journalist Alex Goncalves.

There's certainly a compelling case for Villa to go ahead and swoop in the next 13 days.