According to a report in the Birmingham Mail, it’s very likely that Tommy Elphick won’t be playing his football at Villa Park next season.
The 30-year old defender was sent out on loan to Reading for the second half of last season and, although he made only 4 appearances for the club because of injuries, Royals boss, Paul Clement still wants to sign him on a permanent basis.
If he were to depart, Villa would be alarmingly short at the back. John Terry has already left and it doesn’t look like Christopher Samba will be offered a new contract. This would leave James Chester, whose future at the club is also in doubt, as the only remaining senior centre-back.
Mile Jedinak has proven that he can fill in at centre-back, but if Villa want any chance of gaining promotion next season, they’ll need to sign a couple of specialist defenders. This won’t be easy though as they are being severely restricted by Financial Fair Play.
They have recently been linked with a move for Robert Huth. The former Stoke City and Leicester defender, who won the Premier League title with the Foxes two years ago, is a free agent now. However, Derby and Middlesbrough are also interested.
