Aston Villa Sign Ibrahim Mbaye and Taylor Harwood-Bellis

Aston Villa have raided Europe again, landing two marquee signings in one sweep as Unai Emery rebuilds his squad for the next phase of their rise.

The club have completed a £47m move for highly rated Senegal winger Ibrahim Mbaye from Paris St-Germain, while also striking a deal that could reach £29m for England centre-back Taylor Harwood-Bellis from Southampton.

Villa go big for Mbaye

Mbaye, just 18, arrives with a price tag that underlines how highly Villa rate him. PSG receive 55m euros for a player who only made his senior debut in August 2024, but has accelerated through the ranks at frightening speed.

Last season he played 31 times in all competitions as PSG successfully defended both their Ligue 1 and Champions League titles. He chipped in with three goals and two assists, but those raw numbers only tell part of the story: he stayed in the rotation of one of Europe’s most demanding squads throughout a double-winning campaign.

On the international stage, he has already left a mark. Mbaye featured in all four of Senegal’s matches at the 2026 World Cup and scored in a 3-1 defeat by France, becoming the youngest African player ever to score at a men’s World Cup. That record alone explains why Europe’s elite were watching.

Born in France, he came through at FC Versailles 78 before joining PSG in the summer of 2018. He represented France at youth level, then switched allegiance to Senegal in 2025, qualifying through his father. Now he arrives in Birmingham as one of the most intriguing young wide forwards in the game.

He is also the latest piece in an aggressive attacking overhaul. Mbaye joins Alejandro Garnacho, Johan Manzambi and Nicolas Jackson as new forward options in Emery’s squad. Villa’s frontline will look very different when the new season kicks off.

Harwood-Bellis deal finally done

At the other end of the pitch, Villa have finally got their man in Harwood-Bellis after two earlier bids were rejected by Southampton.

The 24-year-old centre-back joins for an initial £25m, with a further £4m in potential add-ons taking the total package towards £29m. It is a significant outlay for a defender still building his Premier League reputation, and a clear sign Emery wants a long-term pillar at the heart of his back line.

Rebuild after key exits

All this spending comes at a cost, and not just financial. Villa’s Europa League-winning squad has been broken up over the summer.

• Morgan Rogers has completed a huge £117m move to Chelsea.
• Ezri Konsa, one of the leaders at the back, has gone to Arsenal for £55m.
• Up front, Ollie Watkins – the focal point of Villa’s attack – has departed for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia in a £51m deal.

Those are not fringe players leaving. They are the spine of a side that conquered Europe.

Emery, though, is not standing still. With Mbaye and Harwood-Bellis through the door and a new-look attack taking shape, Villa are betting big that this next version of the team can match – or surpass – the last.