Aston Villa prepare £26m midfielder transfer offer as Liverpool eye huge £94m double raid

We begin Thursday’s Premier League transfer rumour roundup with reports from Germany suggesting that Manchester City are considering a swoop for Werder Bremen goalkeeper Michael Zetterer as a potential replacement for Stefan Ortega if he is promoted to first choice in the event of Ederson leaving the club this summer. The Brazilian is attracting plenty of attention from Saudi Arabia, and he does depart, Pep Guardiola could elect to hand Ortega the number one jersey.

According to Sport BILD, in the event of that happening, City could make a move for Zetterer, who has pushed Jiri Pavlenka out of the first team at Werder following a series of strong performances this term. The 28-year-old is understood to have a release clause written into his contract in Germany, although there is no direct mention of how much it is worth exactly.

The 3AM Verdict: Zetterer has impressed this season, but so much of this depends on if Ederson departs, and how City choose to deal with his exit if he does. The expectation would be that they would go out and sign a replacement first choice, rather than promoting Ortega, but stranger things have happened, and in that event, perhaps the German would get his shot at the Etihad.

Villa eye Guendouzi

Elsewhere, Aston Villa are planning an ‘assault’ to sign Lazio midfielder Mattéo Guendouzi this summer, according to Corriere dello Sport. The Italian outlet suggest that the 25-year-old has decided to leave his current club, and that his sale ‘can unlock the market’ for the Serie A side.

It is understood that Lazio will demand around £25.5 million for the former Arsenal man, and that Aston Villa ‘would be ready to offer’ that fee for the Frenchman. Villa boss Unai Emery has worked with Guendouzi before during their shared stint in North London, and is said to be ‘pushing’ for a reunion.

The 3AM Verdict: Guendouzi never quite reached his full potential during his first spell in England, but he has grown a lot since then, and would surely represent a very decent option in the centre of the park if he were to reconnect with Emery at Villa. At £25.5 million, he could be a relatively affordable option too. There is plenty to like here.

Liverpool plot double defender chase

And finally, Liverpool have identified Eintracht Frankfurt’s Willian Pacho and Bayer Leverkusen’s Piero Hincapié as transfer targets this summer, according to a report from El Futbolero. New manager Arne Slot is said to be in the market for a central defender to partner Virgil van Dijk at Anfield next season, and both South Americans could represent realistic targets for the Reds.

Indeed, several clubs have been linked with both players, but it is Liverpool ‘in particular’ who are circling. In terms of cost, Pancho could set the Reds back anywhere up to £51 million, while Hincapié could be worth around £42.5 million. It is unclear whether Liverpool would prefer to bid for one or both.

The 3AM Verdict: It feels unlikely that Liverpool would go out and spend in excess of £90 million on two central defenders this summer, but there is no reason to believe that they couldn’t go out and spend around half of that on one. Both Pacho and Hincapié are fine young players, and either one would be a superb addition to Slot’s squad.