Unai Emery has revealed that signing Joao Felix in January was 'not totally impossible' for Aston Villa before Chelsea entered the frame. Initially, the 23-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Arsenal but, after the Blues swooped in, he opted for a switch to west London instead.
In December, football.london understood that the west London outfit held an interest in the Felix and had sent scouts to watch him on numerous occasions ahead of his eventual arrival. The Atletico Madrid star put pen-to-paper on a six-month deal with Chelsea and, having made a great impression, there is already hope among supporters that he signs on a permanent basis.
football.london understand that there is no option or obligation for the Blues to keep Felix at Stamford Bridge, but that doesn't necessarily mean they won't be interested in doing so. The Portugal international, however, did pen an extension with the Spanish giants before leaving on loan — this will protect his value should Diego Simeone decide to offload the forward in the future, which is believed to be a 'real possibility'.
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But, it could have been all so different had Felix joined Villa instead. According to our sister site BirminghamLive, the Villans held talks with his agent, Jorge Mendes, over a potential move to the west Midlands.
Speaking to the press ahead of their clash with Chelsea, Emery revealed how he almost welcomed the Portuguese star to Villa Park in January. The former Arsenal boss said: "We are realistic about how we can improve, how we can add players to improve our squad.
"Joao Felix was not totally impossible for us but he wanted to play for a team in the Champions League. He has a high salary, and he plays at Chelsea on loan. Chelsea paid a lot of money for that. He’s a very good player but we were never really in the running for him."
While Todd Boehly will have been proud to get him man, Emery's admission sends a stark warning to the American billionaire should he look to keep Felix permanently. The Villa boss highlighted the pull of the Champions League — as it stands, Chelsea are tenth and 11 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham with no more than 11 games remaining.
Felix has previously confirmed that Champions League qualification will be a factor in a decision over his future at the end of the season. Speaking ahead of the clash with Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League round of 16 second-leg earlier this month, he said: "Yeah, playing in the Champions League is always different.
"It’s a competition that everyone wants to play. But now I’m focused on this Champions League, on the game. We have a lot of games yet to try to reach the Champions League in the league. It’s not over.
"But, yeah, playing in the Champions League is an important decision, but the future no one knows, so let’s see what happens and then we’ll see.
"Chelsea is a team who likes to attack, who likes to have the ball, who likes to dominate the game, so that’s the game I like to play," Felix added. "I feel very free to play here, to play as I like. I’m loving it.
"When I left Atletico, I thought it was good for me and for them. So I think it was the perfect deal. So I think it’s important for me, this loan, and I’m very happy to play here."
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