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Matteo Guendouzi has admitted he received interest during the January transfer window, amid links to a move to Aston Villa.

The France international has proven to be a key player for Marseille and has thrived in Ligue 1 after initially joining the club from Arsenal in 2021. Unai Emery was the man who signed the midfielder from the Gunners and is known for being a admirer of the 23. -year-old, who also tried to sign him during his time as manager of Villarreal.

Villa was constantly promoted with a move for the versatile midfielder, who has operated in a more advanced role throughout his time with OM, although the club never made a formal approach. However, the former Arsenal player has revealed that he did receive offers in the January window.

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“It’s true that I had requests this winter, some proposals from clubs, but I didn’t feel like leaving, I wanted to finish the season.” Guendouzi told RMC Sport , when asked about the possibility of him leaving on New Years. “My focus is on those remaining 10 games, achieving our goal.”

As for the possibilities of him continuing in the summer, Guendouzi did not rule out anything but reiterated his love for the club: “This summer? We are not there yet, there will be talks with the club, but I am very happy at OM.

“I always want to keep growing, I did very well here. I know that this club can contribute a lot to me, I am very happy here”.

Reports in France claim that Guendouzi spoke to Villa boss Emery on the phone in January, but the player ultimately decided to stay at the Stade Velodrome. Marseille president Pablo Longoria said the club had not received a “concrete proposal” for the midfielder in January, who was previously said to be valued in the region of 45 million euros.

When asked about Villa’s reported interest in Guendouzi in January, Emery said: “I can’t speak about the possibility of players coming here because at the moment we didn’t do anything about it.

“Some players, of course, if I know them, it could be a good possibility to bring them and be with us. If we can do it, we can add some players, but not specifically talk about a name like Matteo. The possibility is to improve and have a better balance in the squad with different profiles and trying to improve each time the team’s players”.

Would Guendouzi be a good signing for Villa? Tell us in the comments…

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