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<p>Departure on January 1st</p>
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alt="Donyell Malen moves to Roma on loan with a commitment to buy"
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title="Donyell Malen moves to Roma on loan with a commitment to buy">
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<p><span>©IMAGO</span></p>
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<p>Aston Villa's active January transfer window continues, with the club announcing on Friday the departure of winger Donyell Malen. The Dutch forward has secured a move to Roma, starting with an initial loan agreement that includes an obligatory purchase clause for the upcoming summer transfer window. Reports suggest that the Serie A club will pay just over €27 million for the 26-year-old player, making Malen the seventh most expensive sale in Birmingham club’s history.</p>
<p>Malen joined Villa just a year ago, arriving from Borussia Dortmund for €25 million. During his tenure, he made a significant impact on Unai Emery's squad, netting 10 goals and assisting two more in 46 appearances across all competitions. However, with the addition of right winger Evann Guessand (a €30 million signing from Nice) and Jadon Sancho (on loan from Manchester United), coupled with Emiliano Buendía's return from his loan at Bayer Leverkusen, Malen's playing time was reduced, leading to his participation in only 34% of Villa's league matches before his exit.</p>
<p>In this transfer window, Villa Park has already signed Gremio winger Alysson for €10 million and Metz striker Brian Madjo for €12 million, while also being linked to several other players. Selling a player of Malen's caliber for a considerable fee will help balance the club's investment in new signings. Moreover, the club is set to make a €6 million profit on Malen, despite his brief stint of around 12 months at Villa.</p>
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