Aston Villa have pulled off one of the hijacks of the summer. According to Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, Villa have reached a full agreement with SC Freiburg for Swiss midfielder Johan Manzambi, in a package worth almost €70m including add-ons — outbidding Newcastle, who thought they had the deal wrapped up.
Newcastle had agreed a package worth around €60m with Freiburg and even had a long-term contract prepared, but the 20-year-old never committed to the move. The chance to play Champions League football at Villa Park is understood to have swung the race — and it marks Newcastle’s second high-profile miss of the window, after Victor Muñoz chose Liverpool.
Who is Johan Manzambi?
A 20-year-old box-to-box midfielder, Manzambi was one of the stars of Freiburg’s season: nine goals and eleven assists in 58 appearances in all competitions, a seventh-place Bundesliga finish and a run all the way to the Europa League final — against Aston Villa themselves, where he caught the eye of his future employers. He then lit up the World Cup with three goals for Switzerland, whose tournament ended only with Friday’s quarter-final defeat to Argentina. Transfermarkt’s analysts liken his powerful, ball-carrying style to Jude Bellingham and Yaya Touré.
Manzambi’s Freiburg contract ran until 2030 — hence the price tag. The deal is now set to be finalised, with an official announcement expected once the formalities are completed.