Atletico Madrid willing to pay up to £40 million for Aston Villa star - Reports

The Rojiblancos are looking to reinforce the right side of their defense

Atletico Madrid are chasing Aston Villa hot-shot Matty Cash. The 24-year-old only joined the Clarets in the summer of 2020 for a mere £16 million from Championship side Nottingham Forest.

He's since proved his mettle with eye-catching displays to become a Premier League regular while also breaking into Poland's national set-up.

While the full-back was a shrewd piece of business, according to CIES Football Observatory, who've developed a scientific way to measure a player's market value, he's currently valued at only £12.5 million.

But according to The Sun, the Rojiblancos are willing to pay £40 million for his services, more than thrice the amount.

📊 - 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗯𝘆 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲

🥉 - 58 Blocks (3rd)

🥉 - 71 Players tackled (3rd)

🥉 - 184 Pressures in defensive 1/3 (3rd)

4️⃣ - 64 Interceptions (4th)

Outstanding @mattycash622 👊

#AVFC

[@pgr_analytics] https://t.co/KnT2ZidP2d

This will surely spike Villa's interest, as the owners will rake in huge profits on their initial investment.

Given the impact he's made this season, Cash's departure will be a huge loss for head coach Steven Gerrard and the Lions. However, they will be left with a massive transfer budget to revamp their squad.

Also, with the manager efficiently replacing Matt Targett on the other side of the defense with Lucas Digne, few would question his decision to offload the 24-year-old right-back.

This will also be Villa's second major departure in consecutive summers, after Jack Grealish joined Manchester City for a British transfer record of £100 million last summer.

Many predicted for the side to struggle without their playmaking talisman, but the Birmingham outfit has seemed alright, so there's no question why they wouldn't cope without Cash either.

Atletico Madrid looking to sign Cash in place of Trippier

Keiran Trippier left Atletico Madrid in January in a stunning move to Newcastle United for £12 million.

Although Sime Vrsaljko has been playing in his position since his departure, head coach Diego Simeone has revealed that they're looking to reinforce that position with a new signing.

Atletico Madrid are seriously interested in signing Matty Cash for next season. Direct contacts started in January and he's still in Atléti list as potential new right back for Diego Simeone, highly appreciated. ⚪️🔴🇵🇱 #Atleti

Cash will be in Atletico list again for sure. #AVFC https://t.co/qM37Xq2Zii

Valencia's Daniel Wass has also been linked with the club as the player is capable of playing in a wing-back and full-back position despite predominantly operating as a midfielder.

No deal was struck, but now, Cash seems to be ahead of the line of potential recruits as a summer move to Atletico Madrid seems likely.