The Villans are desperate to sign Nurnberg’s Kiyotake.
After having an initial £8.5m bid for FC Nurnberg midfielder Hiroshi Kiyotake rejected by the German side, Aston Villa are preparing to make an improved £10m offer, according to the Daily Express.
The 23-year-old was shortlisted for the prestigious Bundesliga Team of the Year for the Japan international’s performances in 2012/13 and as such, Nurnberg are keen to keep hold of their prized asset.
Kiyotake has a contract with the Germans until 2015 and therefore the club are under no pressure to sell the attacking midfielder this summer, although Villa are still not giving up the chase.
The Birmingham side’s manager Paul Lambert is willing to sell up to seven players – such as fringe squad members Darren Bent and Charles N’Zogbia – in order to land the Japanese ace.
However, negotiations are likely to take some time with Nurnberg chairman Martin Bader giving no credit to an approach for Kiyotake.
“The fact is we have not yet received a new request so we haven’t dealt with it,” Bader said.
“We have the player and have clearly stated that we plan to continue with him.”
Kiyotake was an instant hit in Germany after joining last summer for £880,000 from Cerezo Osaka – also the former side of Manchester United star Shinji Kagawa.
In 31 Bundesliga matches the midfielder scored four goals and provided 11 assists as Nurnberg finished 10th in the league table.
Lambert is keen to overhaul the squad at Villa Park and the club have been one of the busier Premier League sides in the transfer market, bringing in six new players whilst six have also already been sold or released.
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