Diego Carlos is set to leave Aston Villa in the January transfer window.
That is according to Fabrizio Romano, who has reported on X that Carlos is about to join Fenerbahce.
The well-known and well-respected journalist has claimed that a deal between Premier League club Villa and Turkish Super Lig side Fenerbahce for Carlos is already in place.
The £100,000-a-week (SalarySport) defender will fly to Istanbul tonight to complete the transfer.
Romano has noted the transfer fee that Villa will receive from Fenerbahce, adding that Unai Emery’s side are looking to sign Loic Bade from Sevilla as Carlos’s replacement. Newcastle United have also been linked with Bade.
🚨🟡🔵 Diego Carlos to Fenerbahçe, here we go! Deal in place with Aston Villa as Brazilian defender will fly to Istanbul tonight.
Transfer fee expected to be in excess of €10m with Aston Villa keen on Loïc Badé as replacement. pic.twitter.com/0mAQx0nk3m
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 20, 2025
View: Bade in and Carlos out would be good business from Villa
Bade is a very good defender who has done well for Sevilla. While his loan spell at Nottingham Forest from Rennes in the first half of the 2022-23 season did not go well, the 24-year-old has revived his career and has put that disappointment behind him.
After a successful loan spell at Sevilla, the defender joined the Spanish club on a permanent deal in 2023.
Bade, who won the UEFA Europa League with Sevilla in 2022-23, is only 24 now, and under Villa manager Unai Emery, he could take his game to the next level.
While Carlos is a good player, he is 31 now, and his time at Villa has been not particularly great.
There were injury issues for the Brazilian defender who, unfortunately, could not repeat his heroics from Sevilla where he won the UEFA Europa League in 2019-20.
Carlos has made only eights in the Premier League for Villa this season. During the 2023-24 campaign, the Brazilian centre-back made 20 starts in the league for the Villans.
Villa are eighth in the Premier League table at the moment with 36 points from 22 matches, just two points behind fourth-placed and defending champions Manchester City.
