Aston Villa transfer latest and the future of Jaden Philogene, who has been thriving in the Championship after his move to Hull City
Winger Jaden Philogene, who left Aston Villa just months ago, has garnered interest in the transfer market, with reports linking him to tonight’s Europa Conference League adversaries, Ajax. According to the Daily Mail, Philogene, who has impressed in the Championship with Hull City this season, has caught the attention of the Dutch giants, who are set to face Villa in Amsterdam for the first leg of their last 16 tie on Thursday evening.
Philogene joined Villa on their pre-season tour and seemed to have the support of Unai Emery, but after a brief cameo appearance in the opening day defeat against Newcastle United, he, along with Aaron Ramsey and Cameron Archer, who secured moves within the Premier League, was allowed to leave permanently. Thriving at Hull, Philogene has contributed to 14 of the Tigers’ league goals this season.
His impressive performances have reportedly attracted interest from various clubs, including Ajax, who recently signed Jordan Henderson from the Saudi Pro League. However, Ajax is currently struggling in the Eredivisie, sitting 27 points behind league leaders PSV Eindhoven and facing the risk of missing out on European football next season.
During his tenure at Villa, Philogene played on loan for both Stoke City and Cardiff City. He only made six appearances in the first team and only received one start, which came during the 6-0 EFL Cup victory over Barrow in the summer of 2021. But the 22-year-old has seized the chance Liam Rosenior gave him, and he is now regarded as one of the second tier’s most dangerous attackers.
Villa’s involvement in Jaden Philogene’s future career path remains a possibility, as confirmed by Tigers vice-chairman Tan Kesler earlier this season. When Villa struck a deal with Hull in the summer, worth around £5m, for Philogene’s transfer, they inserted a buy-back clause in the agreement.
This clause allows Villa the option to re-sign Philogene for a fixed fee of £15m if Hull secures promotion to the Premier League in the future—a scenario that seems plausible this season. However, this deal can only be activated if both clubs are in the same division. In the meantime, Villa holds the first refusal, providing Hull with reassurance.
Kesler explains, “The buy-back clause can be viewed in both negative and positive lights. It’s a mechanism to ensure a win-win situation. We’ve established a value based on performance, providing clarity for the market. If an offer falls below this buy-back value, it’s unlikely to be considered. It’s beneficial to have another major club involved and contribute to Jaden’s development plan.”
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“If we promote, Villa have the right to buy him back for £15m. Having said that, if we have another offer that’s worth more than £15m then we would have the right to discuss it, it’s not like we’re forced to sell to Villa but they would have the first choice and that’s part of our agreement.
“That’s how Keinan Davis was going to come, and in the future, you might see more players coming in – from Roma, more from Villa, we’re in the process of establishing more relationships – like this to help us get to promotion level. From there on, it’s about the club, it’s about the process. It’s not about individuals, but it’s about individuals participating in the club’s success.
“We want to have the culture for our fans, for everybody else. The club is the main focus. We said from the beginning that we wanted to be the most communicative club with its fans, and in this case, the fans and the club are most important. If Jaden comes in and helps us – I know we’re talking about Jaden, but we’ll talk about many other players who are also very important – to our success, he’s a key part of that, not the main part.”
