Aston Villa must forget Hayden and go all-in for Chalobah to boost midfield options

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Aston Villa are keen to bolster their midfield ranks before today’s January transfer deadline, according to Sky Sports.

They report that Newcastle United’s Issac Hayden and Watford’s Nathaniel Chalobah are both the subject of interest from Villa Park as Dean Smith looks to put together a side capable of making the play-offs.

Villa apparently want two new midfielders, which raises the prospect that both of the English duo could arrive at Villa Park before the end of the day.

Smith reportedly has a substantial wage budget to work with, because the premature end to Yannick Bolasie’s loan spell has freed up £70,000 per week.

But if Villa can only get one deal over the line in the bedlam of deadline day, then they should ensure that it is for former Chelsea man Chalobah.

Hayden is a solid, unspectacular holding midfielder who would do a job in the second tier, but Chalobah is an exciting talent, who needs a run of games and a platform to show what he is capable of.

There’s a reason he’s on the fringes of the England squad and it is just rotten luck with injuries that means he is not a Premier League regular already.

Chalobah would be an outstanding coup for Villa, and he would be a perfect fit for the exciting, quick gameplan Smith has put in place, which is already getting the best out of his former Chelsea team-mate Tammy Abraham.