Triple Aston Villa return ON with Man Utd signing battle underway

Three players could incredibly return to Aston Villa in the same transfer window, while Unai Emery’s side are reportedly challenging Manchester United for the signing of an AC Milan star.

Aston Villa have recalled Leon Bailey from his loan spell at Roma . The winger moved to Italy in August but did not have the desired impact, picking up an injury during his first training session.

Bailey was prevented from making his Roma debut until October, and he went on to make 11 appearances for the club in all competitions.

But Bailey failed to score a single goal and only registered two assists, while further injury problems led to talks between Roma and Villa about a termination of his loan.

The Jamaican, who returned to fitness shortly before his Roma departure, will soon link up with his former Villa team-mates once again.

talkSPORT suggest he could be named as part of the squad to face Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Sunday.

Villa originally paid Bayer Leverkusen £25m for Bailey in the summer of 2021, while they picked up a reported €3m (£2.6m / $3.5m) fee from Roma for his loan.

Villa could bolster their striker ranks too, as our transfer insider Graeme Bailey revealed on January 11 that they are plotting a move to re-sign Tammy Abraham .

The centre-forward is currently on loan at Besiktas from Roma but could soon return to Villa Park as a replacement for Donyell Malen, who, coincidentally, has headed to the Italian club.

Abraham retains admirers in the West Midlands after scoring 26 goals to fire Villa to promotion from the Championship via the play-offs in 2019.

The Englishman is being considered alongside Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta. We revealed on Tuesday that Villa have expressed interest in Mateta after his transfer to Juventus fell through.

As per the Daily Mail , midfielder Douglas Luiz could also reunite with Villa. Emery is on the lookout for a replacement for Boubacar Kamara, who is out with a knee injury, and Luiz has emerged as a surprise option.

Luiz is currently on loan at Nottingham Forest from Juventus, though a permanent move worth £23m (€26m / $31m) is unlikely.

Forest will be obliged to pay that fee if the Brazilian features for more than 45 minutes at least 15 times, which is partly why manager Sean Dyche is using him sparingly.

Instead, Villa could hold talks with Juve over a move for Luiz that would provide the 27-year-old with more starts.

Luiz, like Abraham, has fond memories of his time at Villa Park. He established himself as one of the Premier League’s most reliable midfielders while representing the club between 2019 and 2024.

Luiz left for Juve in a €50m (then £42m) deal in June 2024, but the transfer did not work out and he is now eyeing a permanent home in the Premier League.

The Rio-born ace is not the only midfielder Villa are keen on, as we revealed on January 15 that AC Milan’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek has been offered .

This has been followed up by Fabrizio Romano, who states that Villa are in ‘initial talks’ for the Englishman, while Milan are discussing a new contract with him.

If Villa accelerate their move for Loftus-Cheek then they could enter into a transfer battle with Manchester United.