Aston Villa’s interest ‘stands out’ in bid to sign next Angel Di Maria

Potential suitors of Juventus youngster Matias Soule have been told to ‘beware of Aston Villa’ as the Premier League side look to steal a march on their rivals.

The 21-year-old is attracting interest across Europe after scoring 11 goals and bagging three assists while on loan at Italian side Frosinone.

Despite the right winger’s best efforts, he was unable to to keep the Canaries in Serie A, with Eusebio Di Francesco’s side dropping into Serie B with an 18th-place finish.

The former Argentina Under-20 international, who is left-footed, will now return to parent club Juventus but his future is far from certain.

While his contract at the Old Lady expires in the summer of 2026, it is, perhaps, unlikely he will see out his time with the Italian giants.

DEEP DIVE: Who is Matias Soule? The Argentine forward linked with Tottenham, Newcastle and Crystal Palace while starring on loan in the Italian top-flight

In April, he told ESPN: “My dream is to join Real Madrid one day, that would be incredible. My future? I’m talking to Juventus and I still don’t know what’s going to happen. I didn’t have space to play there and so I accepted a loan move to Frosinone.”

Soule, who has been likened to Angel Di Maria, is reportedly greatly admired by Unai Emery’s Villa – who are unlikely to retain Nicolo Zaniolo following a loan move from Galatasaray.

Aston Villa’s interest ‘stands out’

Now, according to Italian publication Il Bianconero, the Villans’ interest in the youngster ‘stands out’ – but several other clubs, including Roma, are also keeping tabs on him.

Moreover, Calciomercato state that of all the clubs to ‘beware of’, Villa top the list in the race to sign Soule. Another factor to bear in mind, however, is the impending arrival of Thiago Motta to Juventus in the next week.

The former Barcelona and Inter Milan star led Bologna to a top five Serie A finish last term but looks set to join Juve, with reports suggesting he may want to keep Soule at his disposal next season.

READ MORE: Philippe Coutinho offers three-word response as Aston Villa outcast jets in to finalise transfer

Incidentally, things could have been very different for Soule if he had accepted Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad’s lucrative offer in January – which would have seen him link up with Fabinho, N’Golo Kante, Karim Benzema, and more.

Rejected lucrative Saudi Pro League move

On that possible move, he said at the start of 2024: “I rejected Saudi’s mega contract. I felt I had to stay until June. I apologize to Italy if I chose [Lionel] Messi. I’m making a good journey. Especially since I’m in Frosinone, where I immediately felt a lot trust.

“Here you can express yourself at your best, so you can also express yourself with pleasure. When this proposal came to me from Al-Ittihad as a bit of a surprise, I immediately talked about it with my family, but I already knew well in my head what to do: stay to save Frosinone.”

It will be interesting to see how much Villa, Roma, and Juventus want the Argentine, who has been with the Italian side since 2020, in the coming weeks and months.