Aston Villa complete signing of left back Aly Cissokho

After some speculation on whether the move would be permanent or just a loan, the club have confirmed that left back Aly Cissokho has joined on a four year deal. This deal kind of came out of nowhere, and should be a pleasant surprise for Aston Villa fans as there is now a solid left back on the roster. The 26-year old French defender can now add Aston Villa to his CV, alongside FC Porto, Olympique Lyonnais, Liverpool, and Valencia.

After joining Valencia two summers ago, Cissokho made just 25 appearances for the Spanish club and maybe a change of scenery will help him revive his career. He also spent last season on loan at Liverpool, but only made 15 appearances there.

This is a decent bit of business for Villa, as the fee is reported to be £2.4 million. Five years ago, AC Milan tried to buy him from Porto for 15 million Euros but Lyon ended up getting him for just over 16 million (transfermarkt). If he can rediscover the form that made him worth that much money at one point, Villa may have found their left back of the future after missing on purchases of Joe Bennett, Antonio Luna, and Enda Stevens.