Dan Bardell believes Aston Villa signing academy players will help them grow after a deal for centre-back Leon Routh from Luton Town was mooted.
The Secret Scout reported, via X, on 11 July that the 16-year-old had agreed personal terms with the Villans with a fee set to be agreed.
Luton have already conducted transfer business with Villa after Ross Barkley returned to the West Midlands earlier in the window.
Sky Sports and talkSPORT journalist Bardell believes signing Routh is a positive academy signing and has made a comparison to Chelsea.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, Bardell said: “It’s something that Villa have done very well over the last two or three years, in terms of investing in young players from other teams.
“Although nobody has made it through to the first team really, Villa have flipped them really well to make a profit. It’s something that Chelsea have done really well for a number of years.
“It’s important that big clubs have these different transfer strands and it’s clear that is what Villa are doing as they look to grow into a top-level club.
“Signing players like Leon Routh is low risk, he’ll be on low wages and there won’t be much of a transfer fee involved.
“The positives in a few years will be that he’ll play for the first team or be sold, hopefully for a profit.“
Aston Villa interested in Leon Routh from Luton Town
The Villans have already utilised their academy to make a sizable profit in the summer transfer market.
This saw Omari Kellyman depart to join Chelsea in a deal worth £19 million [BBC Sport] after moving to Villa Park from Derby County in 2022.
Supporters were frustrated to see the 18-year-old depart after making six first-team appearances for the club last season [FotMob].
Routh is highly rated at Luton which saw him feature for the Under 18s side across last season at just 16.
Although the defender won’t feature for the Villa first team anytime soon, the signing would be a positive one with the future in mind.
In other Aston Villa news, a summer swap deal has been mooted for Denzel Dumfries to join Emery’s side and one Villa star heads the other way
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