French journalist Joris Crolbois has claimed that Aston Villa are the first club to enter negotiations with highly sought-after FC Metz midfielder Pape Metar Sarr.

The Lowdown: Villa's summer spending spree

As the Villains continue to embark on their summer spending spree, they now seem to have turned their attention towards the Senegal international as they look to strengthen ahead of 2021/22 [One Football].

The Villa Park outfit have already agreed a deal for Emi Buendia and are linked with James Ward-Prowse as well.

Enjoying a fantastic start to life in Ligue 1, Sarr played 22 times in the top flight this term, notching three goals from midfield [Transfermarkt].

The Latest: Villa the only club to have 'started talks' with Sarr

Replying to Villa supporters on Twitter, sports journalist Crolbois (RMC Sport) remarked: “Milan has been following him since February but Villa is the only club to have started talks.”

This indicates that the Midlands side could be in pole position for his signature which will offer major excitement to the Villa Park faithful.

Crolbois continued to say that although 'Villa is the first club' to enter talks, 'other clubs will certainly come', but also offered some words of encouragement to Villa fans: "He is a player with enormous potential comparable to Camavinga of Rennes. He showed this season, especially against PSG, that he has the level of the biggest clubs in Ligue 1. Let's see what happens in the Premier League."

The verdict: Tackling machine

The 18-year-old may add some further bite to the Villa midfield on arrival. Comparatively to the current midfield options, the wonderkid has a higher tackling rate per 90 minutes that John McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Marvelous Nakamba and Morgan Sanson [WhoScored].

All in all, the midfielder would be an outstanding coup for Aston Villa if they were to successfully thrash out a deal. With Crolbois' original report quoting a price tag as high as €30m (£25.8m), he wouldn't come cheap, but Sarr is a beast in the middle of the park already, and at just 18, will surely only become better and even more valuable.

With the right coaching Sarr could be a Premier League star, potentially netting the Villains some serious sell-on value further down the line too, should his development continue at its current rate.

In other news, Villa fans react to an Emiliano Martinez update.