Fresh news has emerged on Aston Villa's pursuit of Olympique Marseille's Boubacar Kamara and AC Milan's Franck Kessie. 

The lowdown

Both Kamara and Kessie will be out of contract at the end of the 2021/22 season.

That means they're currently able to negotiate pre-contract terms with foreign clubs ahead of potentially joining on a free transfer.

Villa tried to strengthen their midfield ranks in January, making enquiries for Brighton's Yves Bissouma, Juventus' Rodrigo Bentancur and Leeds United's Kalvin Phillips, but they were left frustrated (via The Athletic).

The latest

First of all, French outlet Jeunes Footeux (via Sport Witness) report that Villa are 'trying to make their move' for Kamara.

Steven Gerrard is so 'keen' on the 22-year-old that he's made him a 'priority' for the summer transfer window.

That's prompted Villa to offer him 'a big contract' for next season and beyond, but Kamara may also have offers on the table from the likes of Juventus, Arsenal and FC Barcelona.

Villa are also rivalling the Catalan giants for Kessie, Italian publication Il Milanista (also via Sport Witness) claim.

The Midlands outfit have thus far made the 'best offer' to the Ivorian's camp, but his preference would be to move to Spain.

The verdict

Both players are technically defensive midfielders, but these moves shouldn't necessarily be seen as mutually exclusive.

Kessie offers a real attacking thrust, ranking in the 78th percentile relative to positional peers in the top five leagues for non-penalty goals and the 76th for shot-creating actions (via FBRef).

Kamara, who's also capable of playing as a centre-back, doesn't quite possess the same instincts. You could see them both operating in the same midfield, then.

Landing the pair on free transfers would be immense business for Villa, given that they're valued at £43.2million and £22.5million respectively by Transfermarkt.

Together, they also have 44 matches' worth of experience in European competition (Kamara 22, Kessie 31).

In other news, Noel Whelan says Gerrard may have to make a 'massive' call.