Axel Disasi has departed Chelsea to join Premier League rivals Aston Villa on loan for the remainder of the season following a busy deadline day for the defender.
The French centre-back reached an agreement with Villa a week ago, but Chelsea was initially hesitant to sell him to a direct competitor in the battle for Champions League spots.
Although Tottenham Hotspur reportedly reached a deal with Chelsea, Disasi rejected the offer, unwilling to join a team languishing in the lower half of the Premier League table. As Spurs turned their attention elsewhere, Villa pressed ahead with their pursuit.
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In a busy final stretch of the transfer window, Villa, who had already signed Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio in the past two days, officially confirmed Disasi’s arrival just two hours after the window had closed. The 26-year-old is believed to have commanded a £5m loan fee, with Villa covering his Chelsea wages.
Unai Emery’s side has undergone significant changes to their squad, offloading Jhon Duran to Al Nassr for a hefty sum and adding Donyell Malen to the mix, but they were in desperate need of defensive reinforcements.
With injuries to Pau Torres and Tyrone Mings, along with the January departure of Diego Carlos, Emery was forced to pair midfielder Boubacar Kamara with Ezri Konsa in Saturday’s Midlands derby against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The makeshift defense conceded twice in a frustrating 2-0 loss, prompting Emery to declare, “We need some more players. We need to replace some players who left.”
The Spanish manager got his wish with the addition of Disasi.