Bayern Munich and Aston Villa interested in Villarreal defender

Villarreal central defender Pau Torres has been linked with an exit from the Yellow Submarine for some time, and according to Fabrizio Romano, wealthy teams are once again keeping tabs on ‘the boy from the village’.

Torres, 26, attracted plenty of attention during Villarreal’s run to the Europa League victory in 2021. However as a youing, ball-playing central defender, he has been on the radar of Europe’s elite for some time.

Romano claims that the latest showing interest in Torres are Bayern Munich and Aston Villa. In the case of the Germans, Torres could be an option for a left-footed central defender should Lucas Hernandez leave.

Meanwhile Aston Villa, who have been closely linked to a number of La Liga players, are also mentioned. Unai Emery knows Torres as well as anyone, having been in charge of him for nearly two-and-a-half years.

Previously it has been reported that Torres would be available for less than his €45m release clause, with a price perhaps being set at around €40m.

However that report was around a time when Villarreal had gone some time without a major sale, whereas now it looks as if they may see Nicolas Jackson and potentially Samuel Chukwueze leave for big money. As a result, they may well demand his full buy-out clause.