According David Ornstein in The Athletic, Chelsea have agreed to sell Ian Maatsen to Aston Villa for just over £35 million, and personal terms have already been agreed.
The 22-year-old has been with the Blues since 2018, making just 16 senior appearances for the club to date, just 402 minutes in total, with his only start coming against Crystal Palace in the first divisionas well as AFC Wimbledon and Brighton & Hove Albion in the early rounds of the EFL Cup.
However, he has attracted attention during several loan spells, representing Charlton Athletic, Coventry City and Burnley, a key figure when Vincent Kompany's side won the EFL Championship title in 2023.
After sporadic appearances for Chelsea in the first half of the season, Maatsen was loaned out to Borussia Dortmund in January, where he made 23 appearances for Schwarzgelben and scored against Union Berlin, Darmstadt and Atlético Madrid, a key figure in his arrival at the league. Champions League Final, starting the seven games of that competition.
Dortmund had a £35million option to buy included in his loan deal, something they refused to do, and Aston Villa agreed a similar fee with Chelsea to bring the Dutchman to the Midlands.
Soccer insider information suggests that Maatsen has agreed to sign a five-year deal worth around £100,000-a-week with Villa, so the move is expected to go ahead soon.
Maatsen sale eases Chelsea PSR concerns
Having spent almost £1bn since Todd Boehly's Clearlake Capital bought Chelsea from Roman Abramovich, the club is constantly concerned with balancing the books, ensuring they do not breach profitability and suitability rules.
In the last two years, academy graduates Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Andreas Christensen and Billy Gilmour have been sold because the transfer The fees received can, in accounting terms, be recorded as “pure profit”, and Maatsen follows this trend.
Why are Aston Villa breaking the bank for Maatsen?
Maatsen will become the second most expensive transfer in Aston Villa's history, behind only Moussa Diaby, who arrived from Bayer Leverkusen for £51.3m a year ago.
Left-back has been a bit of a problematic position for Unai Emery, with Lucas Digne the first choice, although his Villa career has been plagued by nagging injuries, making him an unreliable option.
Meanwhile, Àlex Moreno is a more than capable substitute, but he has been nothing but useful since arriving from Real Betis, so he could return to La Liga this summer.
After qualifying for the Champions League and competing in UEFA's top competition for the first time since 1982/83, Claret and the Blue Army will need greater depth in their squad, especially at full-back, a key position in the narrow Emery system. and Maatsen is certainly an improvement on what they currently have, especially in attacking areas.
