Barcelona plotting ‘massive investment’ of Aston Villa star also wanted by Arsenal, Man City | OneFootball

Barcelona are reportedly looking to make a ‘massive investment’ in the holding-midfield region and have landed on Aston Villa star Douglas Luiz.

Luiz is one of the most impressive players in the Premier League this season. The Brazilian has scored five goals and chipped in with three assists in 18 games.

The Villans are flying high in third, and are eager to ensure any approaches for their star players do not result in them leaving. In the case of Luiz, they’re so eager to avoid selling that even offers above £100million will be knocked back.

That will give Arsenal and Manchester City work to do, as the pair both want him, according to reports. And while it’s believed he wouldn’t say no to either side, he’s not angling for a move to them, given he’s content at Villa, and rightly so.

Whether he’d like to move to Barcelona is another question, and one that could soon be answered, as the La Liga giants have exploded onto the scene for Luiz.

Indeed, Spanish outlet Sport reports Barca are ‘working hard’ to find a midfielder who fits their style, and believe Luiz is that. It’s said they intend to ‘make a massive investment’ for a player who will star ‘for the next five years’.

It seems unlikely right now that they’d be able to make that massive investment for Luiz, with Villa adamant that they won’t budge from their no-sale stance.

In any case, it’s said Barca see a transfer for Luiz as ‘an upwards value,’ presumably meaning it’ll be worthwhile for any price, but whether they’d be able to force Villa into a sale is another question.

It certainly won’t happen in January, but the report states the La Liga side consider Luiz the ‘ideal midfielder for 2025’. That said, they’ll have time to try and get the right money together and see if they can tempt Villa into a sale.

They’ll have to tempt Luiz, too, as while a move to one of Europe’s biggest sides would be hard to turn down, the project in the Midlands is very exciting, and Villa could well secure Champions League football for the first time come the end of this term.