Aston Villa are pushing to secure the signature of a favourite of manager Unai Emery.

The Midlands club are hoping to strike a deal with Villarreal to sign defender Pau Torres.

The Spanish centre half is available for his £55.5 million buyout clause, which may be beyond Villa.

However, the Premier League giants hope they can negotiate down that fee.

Torres was linked to teams such as Manchester United, Tottenham, and Liverpool in the past.

However, no big move has materialized for the tall, elegant defender, with his lack of pace thought to have put off teams.