Aston Villa given green light to complete Real Madrid signing that would prove Steven Gerrard right

Real Madrid won’t stand in a veteran’s way if he decides to seek pastures new in January, and two Premier League sides including Aston Villa are exploring a move, per a report.

Unai Emery succeeded Steven Gerrard who by all accounts, failed as manager of Aston Villa. The Liverpool legend couldn’t get a tune from his expensively-assembled forward line, though the issues weren’t only in the final third.

Gerrard took umbrage with club stalwart Tyrone Mings earlier in the season. Mings was stripped of the captaincy and dropped from their league opener against Bournemouth.

Clearly, Gerrard did not rate Mings and would gladly have moved the 29-year-old on when the opportunity arose.

However, when summer recruit Diego Carlos suffered an Achilles injury on matchday two, Gerrard was forced into a humbling U-turn.

Mings was recalled to the starting eleven to reignite his partnership with Ezri Konsa, though didn’t impress enough to earn a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Qatar.

Gerrard was later replaced by Unai Emery, though per Mundo Deportivo he seemingly shares Gerrard’s concerns over the central defence he’s inherited.

The Spanish outlet report Aston Villa as well as Wolves are both sizing up Real Madrid veteran, Nacho Fernandez.

Both English sides share a similarity in that they’re managed by Spanish coaches who recently worked in LaLiga. As such, both are fully aware of what they’d be signing if a Nacho coup were completed.

Nacho could reject Real Madrid extension

The 32-year-old is a one-club man having been on Real Madrid’s books throughout his entire professional career. He’s rarely been a regular starter, though has racked up nearly 300 senior appearances for Real Madrid over the years.

Nacho’s current deal expires next summer and Real have offered him a one-year extension. However, the report claims the Spaniard is considering his future, seemingly with a view to finally becoming a regular starter elsewhere.

A Nacho swoop wouldn’t be the sexiest of moves, though a dependable centre-half must never be underestimated.

Indeed, Thiago Silva joined Chelsea for free in 2020 and has established himself as one of the Premier League’s best defenders despite being 38.

Real do want Nacho to stay, though out of respect, it’s noted they won’t put up much of a fuss if he does decide to move on.

As such, a January move is a very real possibility and given his age, only a small fee would be required.

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