Aston Villa have completed the permanent signing of Japanese goalkeeper Zion Suzuki from Italy's Parma, the English club confirmed on Wednesday. The move settles a summer chase for a player who had come within touching distance of joining Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG looked set to land Suzuki after striking an agreement with Parma and the player's entourage worth around 35 million euros. Then the deal fell apart at the eleventh hour over money.
French newspaper "L'Équipe" report that the Parisian club walked away once the goalkeeper's representatives demanded an extra commission of close to 3 million euros. PSG's management refused, branding the request "extortion". Saint-Germain officials tried to reach the player directly, but his advisers blocked them from getting through, and the European champions shut the file for good.
Villa pounced on the collapse. They tabled an offer similar to the one PSG had made, won Suzuki's approval and announced the signing officially today.
In a statement on its official website, Aston Villa said Suzuki had joined the team on a permanent contract from Parma. The Japanese goalkeeper featured for his national team at the 2026 World Cup.
Born in the United States, Suzuki was raised in the Japanese city of Urawa and broke into the Urawa Red Diamonds first team at the age of sixteen. A short spell with Belgium's Sint-Truiden followed, then a move to Parma, where he played across the past two seasons in Serie A.
At 24, he is rated as one of the brightest rising talents in his position and has won 22 caps for Japan's senior side. The club closed the statement by welcoming Suzuki and wishing him success.