Aston Villa agree deal to sign Garnacho

Aston Villa have agreed a deal to sign Alejandro Garnacho from Chelsea.

The arrangement is for a loan with a conditional obligation to buy, which is easily achievable.

The total package, including the loan fee, is understood to meet Chelsea's valuation.

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Sky Sports News has been reporting Chelsea wanted £42.6m for the winger.

Garnacho joined Chelsea last summer from Manchester United for £40m.

The Argentina international winger had not reported for pre-season training at Chelsea in order to allow him to pursue a move away.

The deal comes after the two clubs negotiated a British-record transfer fee of £117m for Morgan Rogers to go in the other direction.

Is Garnacho the right fit on the left for Aston Villa?

Analysis from Sky Sports' Callum Bishop:

In a tough first season for Chelsea, Garnacho struggled to make much of an impact in an already overcrowded left-hand side. The Argentine managed just 1,217 Premier League minutes across his 25 appearances last term, an average of less than 49 minutes per game.

That is less than both Rogers (1,528) and Emiliano Buendia (1,527} managed in the same position while sharing the workload off the left flank for Villa last season.

Their average returns were far more superior too. Garnacho's five goal involvements saw him average one every 243 minutes compared to Rogers' record of a goal involvement every 90 minutes, and Buendia's of every 190.

Should Villa bring in Garnacho, it would surely mean a tweak in Unai Emery's system when the Argentine is on the pitch.

With Buendia and Rogers, there is a versatility that not only sees them able to play on either flank, but also show a tendency to move inside.

Garnacho has operated on the right-hand side previously. He scored a goal in the FA Cup final win for Manchester United over local rivals City while operating from that flank. Cut inside though? That is something you see far less from the winger.

His tendency is to hug the touchline and stay wide. In doing so, it would mean that Emery would need to be flexible with his attacking patterns, or Garnacho would have to show adaptability. Which is more likely?