James Chester?

The Daily Telegraph carries a story today linking Villa with Hull City's highly rated defender James Chester.

Hull City manager Steve Bruce determined to keep James Chester out of Aston Villa's clutches

Villa were reported to have scouted Chester (along with a myriad of other players) in the January window. However, the player is thought to only have a year on his contract and may be up for grabs if he can't be persuaded to sign an extension.

Standing at just 5' 10", he's hardly what you'd call statuesque, but has clocked up over 100 appearances in Hull's often miserly defence.

One to keep an eye on.