Chelsea news: Xabi Alonso pounces for influential Aston Villa figure, 'goodbyes' already held with Unai Emery

Chelsea have allegedly moved to appoint Aston Villa's set-piece coach Austin MacPhee.

The Blues and Villans are no strangers to conducting business with each other in recent weeks, with Chelsea having signed Morgan Rogers in a £117m deal.

Alejandro Garnacho has moved in the opposite direction in a separate deal, albeit with the transfers seemingly benefitting both clubs in their efforts to comply with the Premier League's and UEFA's financial regulations.

More movement could be on the way, a result of Villa holding an interest in signing Chelsea forward Nicolas Jackson.

However, as per John Townley of the Birmingham Mail, Chelsea have inflicted a further blow on Villa.

© Imago / ANP

Chelsea move for Aston Villa set-piece coach

The report claims that MacPhee will be ending his association with Villa to make the switch to Stamford Bridge.

MacPhee has allegedly already said his goodbyes to Villa's staff and players ahead of finalising a move to Chelsea.

He has spent a total of five years at Villa, spending time working under Dean Smith, Steven Gerrard and Unai Emery.

Time has also been spent on the backroom staff with Scotland and Portugal, emphasising his strong reputation in the coaching world.

As per The Athletic, Chelsea activated a release clause in MacPhee's contract, and Villa's attempts at a renewal failed courtesy of the 46-year-old wanting to take on a new challenge.

Last season, Aston Villa - along with Arsenal - scored the most goals (29) from set pieces across Europe.

© Iconsport / Alberto Gardin / ZUMA Press Wire

What next?

Although Chelsea left for Australia for the start of their pre-season tour on Friday, the expectation will be that MacPhee will now link up with the group.

The Blues announced a 27-player squad for the trip earlier this week.