Villa looking to swoop for Korean midfielder from Swansea

According to the Birmingham Mail, Paul Lambert is looking to make Swansea's Ki Sung-Yeung Aston Villa's fourth signing of the summer. The 25-year-old holding midfielder spent last season with Sunderland on loan and featured in South Korea's World Cup squad this summer. In Brazil he managed one assist in Korea's match against Algeria and put in some good work for one of the tournament's most disappointing squads.

Unlike Philippe Senderos and Joe Cole, though, it seems unlikely that Sung-Yeung would come to Villa on a free transfer, as he still has one year remaining on his Swans contract. For Sunderland last season, he started 25 matches and appeared in two more. In those appearances, he found the back of the net three times. That said, he probably didn't do much to cement himself into Swansea's plans, which likely explains why he may be available.

Given that he only has one year remaining on his contract and he doesn't look to have a lock on playing time, Sung-Yeung will probably come at a cost a bit below his market value. As Paul Lambert doesn't have much money to spend, something in the range of £3 million or so would seem likely.

For Villa, Sung-Yeung would be able to fill the holding midfield role that Ashley Westwood was forced into a lot last season. If Westwood is freed up, he could find a bit more rotation in the midfield alongside Fabian Delph in the place of Karim El Ahmadi. Sung-Yeung is not a player who will blow us away, but he could be a solid addition to a midfield that could use a bit more help. It would also provide a bit more cover for the back three should Lambert choose to play the 5-at-the-back that's starting to look more likely. Sung-Yeung would make it so that the outside backs could bomb forward with a little less fear of a counter-attack dooming Villa.