Damian Vidagany makes Aston Villa promise after Jacob Ramsey's £44m Newcastle transfer

Damian Vidagany makes Aston Villa promise after Jacob Ramsey's £44m Newcastle transfer

Aston Villa will pocket an initial £39 million from Newcastle United for Jacob Ramsey

Aston Villa director of football operations Damian Vidagany (Image: PA)

Aston Villa’s director of football operations, Damian Vidagany, has reassured supporters that the club are doing everything possible to supply Unai Emery with the strongest squad available, despite financial rules limiting their flexibility.

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It has been a challenging summer window for Villa, who have only brought in Marco Bizot and Evann Guessand, while recently losing Jacob Ramsey.

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Villa will receive an initial £39 million from Ramsey’s move to Newcastle United, with a further £5 million potentially due in add-ons.

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Leon Bailey is also close to joining AS Roma on an initial loan, with the Italian side holding an option to make the transfer permanent at the end of the season.

Bailey was left out of Villa’s squad to face Newcastle after being granted permission to discuss terms with Roma.

Meanwhile, Leander Dendoncker is set to join Spanish side Real Oviedo on a free transfer.

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These deals will help Villa strengthen in the final two weeks of the window, but the club remain unable to spend heavily due to UEFA’s financial regulations.

The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) are also a major factor. Selling Ramsey significantly eased the situation, as academy sales count as pure profit under the system.

Last summer, Vidagany spoke to talkSPORT about the restrictions Villa are facing in the transfer market.

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“Absolutely [PSR makes it more difficult]. Clubs need rules to stick to, but PSR is making it very complex,” he said. “The system is forcing clubs to sell their academy players. This is the way to generate profit and comply with the rules, but I think it is killing some of the spirit of football.

“It’s something that is not natural in football, something that is breaking the cycle. It affects wage inflation, how clubs want to build squads, and forces deals that are not natural to the market. To get the best deals you need time, and PSR is not helping.

“We, as a club, have the ambition to compete among the best. I don’t like the concept of a ‘top six,’ but breaking into that group is very difficult. Clubs with greater resources find it easier to comply with PSR. It feels like an establishment we’re trying to break into, but the system is holding us back.

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“We’re lucky to have one of the best managers in the world, who is helping us to overcome these barriers.”

Following confirmation of Ramsey’s £40 million move to Newcastle on Sunday, Vidagany quoted a post on X containing those earlier remarks and added: “One year later, every word rings even truer: we keep fighting this situation to deliver a strong team while complying with PSR and UEFA rules. However difficult it is, we won’t give up. Thanks and good luck, JJ.”

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