Aston Villa are thought to be looking at a deal for Crystal Palace maestro Eberechi Eze, according to football scout Mick Brown – who claims that the Eagles star ‘ticks a lot of boxes’ for Unai Emery ahead of a potentially huge summer move that could see them snub a move for Marcus Rashford.
Eze scored the opener against Villa at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-final at the end of April, beginning a rout over Emery’s side in an eventual 3-0 win for the south London club, where they’ll face Manchester City in the final. But it’s been Eze’s performances over a number of years that have piqued the interest of some of the Premier League’s best clubs, with Villa the latest side to join the race for his talents.
Brown: Villa ‘Looking’ at Eberechi Eze Deal Ahead of Summer Move
The England star could be on the move in the coming months
The report by Football Insider states that Eze has a £60million release clause in his deal in Thornton Heath, and Palace won’t accept any offers below that for their ‘superstar’ – which is a huge outlay.
| Eberechi Eze’s Premier League statistics – Crystal Palace squad ranking | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stats | Output | Squad rank |
| Appearances | 31 | =8th |
| Assists | 8 | 1st |
| Key Passes Per Game | 1.7 | 1st |
| Shots Per Game | 3.1 - | 1st |
| Dribbles Per Game | 2.1 | 1st |
| Match rating | 7.04 | 2nd |
But Brown believes that if Villa sell any of their attacking stars or turn down a move for Rashford amid his loan move from Manchester United, that could give them the capital needed to raise the funds to bring the former Queens Park Rangers star to the west Midlands, boosting the creativity in Emery’s side by a long stretch. He said:
“Aston Villa have been looking at a deal for Eberechi Eze. He’s got talent that very few players have got at this level, and his performance at Wembley will have done him no harm.
“He ticks a lot of boxes for Villa at his best, and if they can get him in the right situation he could be a difference-maker, but if they can’t then I’m not sure.
“[Unai] Emery will make a decision about whether he’s going to add to what they’ve already got.
“[Youri] Tielemans and [Morgan] Rogers are key players in that midfield, then they’ve got [Boubacar] Kamara sitting behind them, and he’s not the same type of wide player as somebody like [Marcus] Rashford.
“So where does Eze fit in with all of that? That will be for the manager to decide. If they’re going to lose Rashford and people like Marco Asensio and perhaps even Rogers, then Eze will certainly be an option for them. At the moment, though, they have other priorities which will be addressed first.“
Eze has 31 goals and 23 assists in just 143 Premier League games for the Eagles, a rate of 0.37 goal contributions per game – and if he moves into a side such as Villa’s with star-studded options, that number could increase.
With the likes of Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins and potentially Marcus Rashford being the forwards to feed chances through to, Eze could have a successful career at Villa Park if he was to make the move.
Statistics courtesy of WhoScored. Correct as of 06-05-25.
Aston Villa Want to Sign ‘World-class’ £75,000-a-Week Star Alongside Garcia
The Villans could be set to overhaul their goalkeeping department this summer.
Sign up to The GIVEMESPORT Report to get exclusive daily updates from Fabrizio Romano, Ben Jacobs, Dean Jones and Tom Bogert sent straight to your inbox.
