Aston Villa are closing in on the signing of Atletico Madrid defender Matteo Ruggeri. A deal for the 24-year-old left-back is progressing, and he is expected to move to Villa Park after just a season at Atletico. He will replace Lucas Digne, who completed an £8.5m return to Paris St-Germain on Sunday.

Manager Unai Emery is looking to revamp his left-back options to add more physicality. Villa had also been interested in AC Milan's Pervis Estupinan. Meanwhile, Ian Maatsen is due to start against PSG at the Red Bull Arena in Austria.

Ruggeri made 47 appearances for Atletico last season after joining from Atalanta. He won the Europa League with Atalanta in 2024 and was named in the competition's team of the season. While he earned a first senior Italy call-up in March 2025, he is yet to play for the national side.