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Martin O’Neil’s appointment as Nottingham Forest boss could offer Aston Villa the perfect chance to offload Glenn Whelan.
What’s the word?
The former Republic of Ireland manager was named as Aitor Karanka’s replacement on Tuesday, and the new Forest boss could look to add experienced signings in the January window to bolster a side currently failing to meet the club’s expectations.
Although there is yet to be any real speculation on the subject, O’Neill could target Villa fringe star Whelan to add that taste of knowledge, with the 35-year-old out of favour at Villa Park.
The former Ireland manager has praised his excellent performances for his country before, and the 84-cap international was even handed the captaincy under O’Neill, who spent ten years as a player at the City Ground.
Villa would be unlikely to receive much compensation should a move occur, with the former Stoke City midfielder in the final months of his contract, but Dean Smith could ensure his club receive a small fee.
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Would Villa miss him?
Since joining from Stoke in 2017, the defensive midfielder has made 54 appearances in Claret and Blue, but has only been utilised as a sporadic inclusion under Smith.
Villa fans, and potentially Smith himself, may well be keen to offload him before his contract expires, as he struggles to offer anything more than the likes of John McGinn, Birkir Bjarnason or Conor Hourihane.
The Villans are also said to be interested in bringing Newcastle’s Isaac Hayden to Villa Park during the winter transfer market, which would only serve to push the 35-year-old further down the pecking order alongside fellow soon-to-be out of contract midfielder Mile Jedinak.
