Unai Emery
Aston Villa defender Lucas Digne has hinted that he is set to stay amid speculation linking him with a move elsewhere.
The left-back arrived at B6 from Everton last January but Ligue 1 side Nice have been strongly linked with a move for the defender. However, Digne has provided the clearest indication yet that his future remains at Villa Park.
The 30-year-old posted on Instagram a picture of himself in a Villa shirt with the caption “LD12” alongside two love heart emojis in the club’s claret and blue colours.
Speaking before Villa’s 3-1 win over Burnley on Sunday, Emery admitted that Digne was likely to stay ahead of Friday’s transfer deadline with the window closing in England at 11pm. The Frenchman is the only fit available player in that position, with Alex Moreno on the sidelines as he recovers from surgery.
Unai Emery said: “We need two very good left backs and now we have an injury to Alex Moreno. Lucas Digne, always, we will have the respect of him because he’s very important for us. And then we were managing with him at the beginning of the season of the possibility (him leaving) maybe, if it was good for him, it was good for the club and we could have in the squad two good left-backs like with him and Alex Moreno. That could be a possibility. But today, tonight, he’s more closer to staying here than to leave. Now Alex Moreno is injured, he’s playing consistently. For us the left back (position) is very important because usually we are adding our left back to be higher, more of a protagonist offensively than the right full-back. It’s very important to get him into the attacking third with the quality he has and with the commitment he’s showing us.”
