Marca report that Italy international Matteo Ruggeri will join Aston Villa after an agreement with Atletico Madrid worth €18m plus €6m in add-ons.
The left-back just celebrated his 24th birthday last month and was purchased from Atalanta in the summer of 2025 with an investment worth €17m.
His value has since increased considerably on the transfer market, thanks to seven assists in 47 competitive appearances for the Colchoneros.
He started 39 of those games last season, including all the Champions League knock-out rounds that took them to the semi-final against Arsenal.
Ruggeri ready for Aston Villa transfer
According to Spanish site Marca, a deal has been done for Atletico Madrid to complete the sale to Aston Villa, and he won’t be travelling with Diego Simeone’s squad to South Korea.
It is going to be a fixed fee of €18m plus a further €6m in potential performance-related add-ons.
Ruggeri has not yet agreed personal terms, but is not expected to put up too much resistance.
Once that is completed, along with Nahuel Molina’s imminent sale to Roma, then Atletico Madrid could use those funds to beat Inter to Tottenham Hotspur defender Cristian Romero.
Another potential knock-on effect is that Aston Villa will abandon their pursuit of Milan left-back Pervis Estupinan, as they have the role covered now with Ruggeri.
