Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce is not convinced that he will be able to lure Shane Long away from Southampton on loan this month, according to a report from Birmingham Live.
The Championship promotion hopefuls are desperate to recruit a new striker on loan before the window slams shut at the end of August and Long is believed to be among the options under consideration.
Mark Hughes has previously insisted that Long remains firmly in his plans for the future at St Mary’s but following the addition of Danny Ings from Liverpool, first-team chances for the Republic of Ireland international appear to be slim.
Bruce is evidently keen for his Villa side to capitalise on this opportunity to land Long on loan. However, as per Birmingham Live, the Villa boss is not confident that he will be able to convince the 31-year-old to take the step down to the Championship.
Long has spent the majority of his senior years playing Premier League football with clubs such as West Brom, Hull City and most recently Saints, indicating that a move to the second-tier of English football would not be an attractive proposition.
Villa have also set their sights on Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham but could face a similar task in convincing the player to drop down a league for regular playing time.
