With Steve Bruce eager to add to his midfielder this month, Aston Villa are targeting moves for some of the division’s most talented central midfielders.
A £3m bid has been made for Nottingham Forest’s Henri Lansbury, whose contract expires at the end of the season, but Bruce isn’t resting on his laurels and has identified a contingency plan.
According to the Express and Star, Villa are keeping tabs on Conor Hourihane’s situation at Barnsley ahead of a possible move for the former Sunderland and Ipswich midfielders.
The 25-year-old joined Barnsley from Plymouth in July 2014 and has rapidly become one of the teams best players. In 23 appearances in the Championship this season, Hourihane has scored five goals and assisted in a further 12 – one of the highest tallies in the division so far this season.
Speaking about his future earlier this week, Hourihane said: “I am a Barnsley player as it is. I have got a contract until the end of the season and I will see where it takes us.
“I am concentrating on my football at the moment and will let what I do on the pitch do my talking.”
To make room for another midfielder in the squad, Mile Jedinak could be allowed to leave the club just six months after joining from Crystal Palace.
