Aston Villa transfer news: Unai Emery 'failed' with summer approach for Ligue 1 defender

Aston Villa allegedly make an approach for Lens defender Matthieu Udol during the summer transfer window.

Having brought in 10 fresh faces and witnessed five key players depart Villa Park, Unai Emery will be relieved to have concluded his business for the first half of 2026-27.

That is despite Villa sitting towards the bottom of the Premier League table after accumulating just one point and failing to score a goal in three matches.

Next up for Villa is a Champions League fixture against Club Brugge, a game in which Matteo Ruggeri could be provided with his first start for the club.

However, as per journalist Sebastien Denis, Emery had another potential new left-back on his radar.

© Imago / Sportimage

Aston Villa miss out on Lens defender

The report claims that Udol was a name who was on Villa's shortlist at some point during the off-season.

Udol was a star performer during his first season with Lens, contributing three goals and 10 assists from 40 appearances.

With Lens winning the Coupe de France and finishing runners-up in Ligue 1, it came as no surprise that the 30-year-old attracted interest over the summer.

Nevertheless, it is claimed that Lens turned down approaches from Aston Villa, Sunderland and AC Milan without a second thought.

Meanwhile, Udol is said to have given no consideration to departing Lens, where he still has two years left on his contract.

He has spent his entire career in French football, enhancing his reputation to the point where he featured in Didier Deschamps' pre-World Cup squad.

Across 208 matches in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, Udol has 12 goals and 27 assists to his name, an impressive return for a player whose career trajectory appears to be on the up.