Aston Villa join race for Chelsea defender Ian Maatsen

Ian Maatsen is set to leave Chelsea this summer and interest has now emerged from the Premier League in the form of Aston Villa. 

The left-back spent the second half of this season on loan with Borussia Dortmund, which was a very productive spell for the Dutch star. The 22-year-old featured in 23 games for the Bundesliga club, scoring three goals and assisting two others as the German outfit finished runners-up in the Champions League.

Dortmund want to keep Maatsen at the club on a permanent basis and will need to match the £35m release clause in the full-back’s Chelsea contract to make it happen.

However, The Telegraph states that the Bundesliga side are reluctant to do this and that may open the door for Aston Villa to make a move. The report states that Villa have now enquired about Maatsen and may look to add the left-back to their squad ahead of the 2024/25 campaign as the Premier League outfit are set to return to the Champions League.

Unai Emery already has Lucas Digne and Alex Moreno as his left-backs, with one of these likely to move on if the Chelsea star arrives at Villa Park over the coming months.

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Aston Villa are in a good position to sign Ian Maatsen from Chelsea

Both Chelsea and Aston Villa need to sell players ahead of June 30 to comply with the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules and once that is complete, both English clubs should be free to sign new stars.

The two clubs are in talks over Jhon Duran, while deals for Conor Gallagher and Ian Maatsen could also happen between the Premier League duo.

This relationship with the Blues puts Villa in a good position to land the left-back and given that they are more likely to match his £35m release clause, that also gives them the edge over Borussia Dortmund in the race for the Dutch defender.