Aston Villa Sign French Defender Frederic Guilbert From Caen for Undisclosed Fee

​Aston Villa have completed their fourth signing of the January transfer window, bringing in French defender Frederic Guilbert from Caen.

The right back joins Dean Smith's side for an undisclosed fee, although he will return to Caen until the end of the season to help in their fight against relegation.

​Aston Villa announced on their ​official website that they had signed the 24-year-old defender, who will be integrated into the squad next summer ahead of the 2019/20 season.

Dean Smith's first transfer window since he was appointed Villa manager has been a busy one, with Guilbert becoming the fourth new addition to his squad.

Goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic was the first, agreeing to join Villa from Gent back in December and immediately becoming Smith's first choice goalkeeper upon his arrival.

Loan deals for Wolves defender Kortney Hause and Bournemouth's Tyrone Mings have followed as Smith has begun to shape the squad to his liking.

Guilbert came through the youth ranks at Caen, having joined the club at the age of 13. He was sold to Cherbourg in 2013 before he had ever made a first team appearance for his first club.

He joined Bordeaux a year later and earned his first and only France Under-21 cap during his time there, before returning to Caen in 2016, first on loan, before making the move permanent the following year.

He made 89 appearances for Caen and scored his only senior goal against Strasbourg in 2018, which was also the only match in which he captained the team.