Lino Sousa, a 19-year-old Arsenal talent, is almost set to clinch a permanent deal with Aston Villa, where he will initially be loaned to Plymouth.
Fabrizio Romano reports that Lino Sousa has agreed to a long-term contract with Aston Villa and is expected to join the team permanently from Arsenal. After that, Unai Emery will permit the 19-year-old Arsenal star to sign a loan with Plymouth Argyle because he believes it’s important to give him adequate senior playing time.
With the Arsenal junior teams, Lino Sousa has seen considerable success and was frequently invited to Mikel Arteta’s first team training sessions. Additionally, he has frequently toured with the senior team, and the Gunners supporters thought he could have established himself as a regular in the coming year.
The Portugal-born England Under-19 left-back may have decided to quit the Gunners just to increase his playing time in the senior squad. Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu, and Jakub Kiwior now hold the left-back positions in the first squad, therefore Sousa would have had a difficult time breaking into the starting lineup.
Some Arsenal supporters would have preferred a loan from the team. However, as things stand, Sousa is almost done moving to Aston Villa. He is now a permanent member of the Midlands team, and a contract through 2028 is available for signing.
In order to bring Sousa up to speed, Villa will now loan him to Plymouth Argyle for six months, ending at the end of the current campaign. The team will be hoping that the 19-year-old Arsenal virtuoso will have enough playing time to gain confidence before he returns in the summer to challenge for a starting position.
Aston Villa has exploded in the last few days of the window, after remaining silent for the most of this month. Morgan Rogers from Middlesbrough has also joined Aston Villa on a permanent basis, as Emery wanted to bring in a new attacker before the window closed.
As it stands, Sousa will follow him shortly. Aston Villa is unlikely to bring anyone more, though, beyond that. Few people are anticipated to leave the club in the final hours of the window, in terms of departure
