According to website Birmingham Live, Aston Villa have made their first transfer signing of the summer by landing Birmingham winger Jota.
Although Birmingham Live say that “the deal to bring Birmingham City winger Jota to Aston Villa is now complete“, there has been no official announcement from either club that this is definitely the case.
They do add some tantalising details to the deal, saying that part of the deal involves Villa midfielder Gary Gardner going the other way. Gardner has impressed on a season-long loan deal at St Andrews this season and Birmingham Live say that the two clubs are “set to make that temporary switch a permanent one.”
They go on to add that there is an additional fee “believed to be in the region of £4m” that will be added to the transfer of Gardner from Villa to their cross-city rival Birmingham.
Jota, who cost the Blues nearly £6m when signing from London side Brentford on deadline day 2017, featured in 40 Sky Bet Championship appearances last season, scoring three goals and adding nine assists for Birmingham City in a season marked by a points deduction for falling foul of FFP regulations.
Villa will also be looking to add a striker to their ranks, one who can replace the goals of Tammy Abraham amidst worries that the Chelsea youngster will not be allowed back out on loan/made available for sale due to the London side facing a transfer ban that will rule them out of any form of dealings until the start of next season.
