Jhon Duran's eye-watering Al-Nassr salary as Monchi confirms two Aston Villa transfer targets
Aston Villa's president of football operations Monchi has said that the offer proposed to the club for Jhon Duran was simply too significant to reject, as they prepare to allow the Colombian striker to join Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. Duran, 21, only signed a long-term contract with Villa in October, but months later he is all set to depart Villa Park after two years.
The forward has made a real impact this season in various competitions, scoring winning goals against West Ham and Everton at the beginning of the season and then stunning Bayern Munich in the Champions League at Villa Park. The speculation from the summer pointing towards an exit, though, never truly subsided. West Ham and Chelsea retained their interest, but all parties have been blown out of the water by big spending Al-Nassr.
Duran is expected to fetch north of £65m, having signed for around a quarter of that sum from Chicago Fire in the summer of 2023, and the player himself, Monchi has revealed, will be earning as much as five times what he is on at Villa - despite having just signed a new and improved deal.
READ MORE: Birmingham City transfer window ins and outs as five deals completed and more to come
READ MORE: Birmingham City transfers: Chris Davies sets target and potential exits before deadline
"Today has been complex, because we've been in the middle of celebrating Wednesday, but also with the market there is a lot of movement and we are trying to shore up the squad in what remains of the market," Monchi told the El Partidazo de COPE Podcast.
"I hope [Friday] the documents can be signed, but yes - Jhon Duran is an important sale of a very good player, a player perhaps unknown in Spain, but he is a player with tremendous potential. What is true is that the offer was a difficult one to reject because it was one of many numbers. We valued all the pros and cons and in the end we decided to accept.
"If someone wants to leave, you can't compete. Not even the English can compete, not only transfer level but above all salary level. In the case of Jhon Duran, his salary has increased five-fold - and it was already an important salary at Aston Villa because we renewed his contract three months ago and we put him at a slightly higher level."
Monchi also confirmed that there remains an interest in pair Joao Felix and Marco Asensio, players Villa have sought to bring to the West Midlands on multiple occasions before now, and deals with Chelsea and PSG respectively they're looking to conclude before Monday night's transfer deadline if the numbers work. Monchi adds that Unai Emery is a big fan of both players.
"Let's see with the names we're considering," he added. "It attracts a little attention depending on what he wants from the profile that he's looking for. They are two similar players who move in a similar area of the field and they're to Unai's liking. Marco Asensio, Aston Villa tried to sign him two summers ago. In the end he decided to go to PSG.
"I think with Felix we've tried to bring him in practically every market. In the end he decided to go to Chelsea, in the exchange with Conor Gallagher and Atletico Madrid. He's always been a target for us. Neither of them are easy because of the salary level and the cost level. It's not easy but it's true and I cannot deny that they are players who are attractive.
"If there is a coach in European or even world football who is characterised by recovering players and getting the most out of them, it's Unai Emery. At Valencia, Sevilla, Villarreal, even here in Birmingham and Aston Villa, he has been able to recover talent. If the footballer has talent, and in the case of Joao Felix he does, it's a case of finding a suitable environment to get the best version of the player."
