Crystal Palace are making a bold attempt to derail Aston Villa's pursuit of Club Brugge centre-back Joel Ordonez, with the London club opening talks with the Belgian side over a potential deal.

Villa had turned their attention to Ordonez after negotiations with Southampton over defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis stalled — a significant gap in valuation between the two clubs proving impossible to bridge.

The need to bolster their defensive ranks became more pressing for Villa after they sold key centre-back Ezri Konsa to Arsenal last week, leaving Oliver Glasner's side short at the back.

Palace accelerate defensive rebuild

Crystal Palace's interest in Ordonez intensified following a serious injury to Chadi Riad, who was stretchered off during Saturday's match against Everton. The club wasted little time in responding, completing a loan deal for Axel Disasi on Wednesday — but are not stopping there.

Palace view Ordonez as a long-term target and are now pushing to add the 22-year-old Ecuador international as a second centre-back signing this window.

Club Brugge are understood to value Ordonez at £40 million, with discussions between the Belgian club and interested parties continuing. Villa had been working on a deal for the defender in recent days, but now face a direct challenge from Palace for his signature.