Aston Villa have given Liverpool permission to discuss personal terms with winger Stewart Downing after accepting a reported £20m bid from the Reds. The £20m offer from Liverpool came after Villa had rejected two successive lower bids, estimated to be £12.5m and £15m, from the Reds.
Both Aston Villa and Liverpool confirmed the news. Villa chief executive Paul Faulkner also added that Downing had submitted a formal transfer request to the club. Faulkner also mentioned that Villa had lined up a couple of players as replacements for their outgoing players.
Should Downing leave, which at this moment only looks like a matter of time, it will mean Villa losing both their star wingers to clubs from the North West. Downing’s signing will take Liverpool’s summer spending spree close to £50m. The Reds have already completed the acquisitions of Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam.
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