Manchester United’s Axel Tuanzebe loaned to Napoli to end Aston Villa spell

• Napoli have paid a €500,000 fee to loan the defender

• Tuanzebe has featured just six times for Villa this season

Axel Tuanzebe, the Manchester United defender, is set to join Napoli on loan, putting to an end his spell at Aston Villa.

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Tuanzebe, 24, was due to spend the season at Villa in his third loan spell at the club but he has been redirected to Serie A, where Napoli will pay a €500,000 fee to loan him until the end of the 2021-22 season.

The former England U21 player spent last season at his parent club, making 18 appearances, but returned last summer to the club for whom he played during two separate spells in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. He has played just six times this season, and Dean Smith, the manager who brought him back to Villa, has since been replaced by Steven Gerrard.

The Napoli loan, with paperwork completed, does not include an option to buy the player. Tuanzebe is set to undergo a medical.