Aston Villa Nears £38m Joao Gomes Signing Amid Midfield Rebuild

Aston Villa are closing on the signing of Joao Gomes from Wolves in a deal worth up to £38m, as Unai Emery accelerates a major reshaping of his midfield.

The Brazil international has left Wolves’ pre-season training camp in Portugal and is scheduled to undergo a medical on Thursday, with only the final formalities standing between him and a move to Villa Park.

Villa have agreed an initial fee of £34m, with a further £4m in add-ons, for a player they believe can bring bite, energy and aggression to the centre of the pitch.

They need it.

Youri Tielemans has already departed for Manchester United in a £35m move, removing one of Emery’s key technicians from the engine room. Amadou Onana, signed to add physical presence and vertical power, has been ruled out until next year after suffering a serious knee injury while on duty for Belgium at the World Cup. Two major pieces of the plan, gone in quick succession.

So Villa have moved decisively.

Gomes, 23, has been on the radar of several top clubs, with Atletico Madrid among those who showed serious interest but never pushed a deal over the line. Villa did. They see a player entering his prime, hardened by a brutal season at Molineux.

Last term, as Wolves slid to the bottom of the Premier League, Gomes remained one of the few consistent performers. He made 41 appearances in all competitions in 2023-24, battling in a side that never found its rhythm and ultimately paid the price. Since arriving from Flamengo in 2023, he has played 130 times for Wolves and scored seven goals, a modest tally that underlines his profile: destroyer first, distributor second, but always available for the ball.

For Wolves, the sale represents a significant profit on a player brought in from Brazil only last year, but also another painful reminder of their reset after relegation. For Villa, it is an opportunity to pounce on proven Premier League quality at a moment of weakness for a rival.

And Gomes is unlikely to be the last arrival.

Villa are also close to completing a club-record deal worth more than £50m for Switzerland international Johan Manzambi from Freiburg. If that transfer is finalised as expected, Emery’s midfield will look radically different: Gomes to snap and harry, Manzambi to dictate and surge, a new spine built at considerable cost and with clear intent.

Villa have spent heavily before. This feels different. This is targeted, ruthless squad surgery aimed at keeping the club in the Champions League conversation, not just chasing it.

Gomes now stands on the brink of the biggest move of his career. From Flamengo to a relegated Wolves side, and now to a Villa team aiming upwards. The question is no longer whether Aston Villa are rebuilding their midfield.

It is how far this rebuilt midfield can take them.