Aston Villa will look at a move for Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie in January, according to The Sun’s Alan Nixon.

McKennie was actually linked with a late move to Villa Park last month. Labelled as a ‘rock’ by former Juve manager Andrea Pirlo, Villa were reportedly ready to satisfy the Serie A club’s €30m (£25.7m) valuation for the USA international.

As we know, a dramatic last-gasp swoop never materialised, but it appears as if Johan Lange has already made the 23-year-old a winter transfer window target at Villa Park.

The Latest: Nixon claim

According to The Sun, Aston Villa remain keen on McKennie, who has been told by Juventus that he is free to leave the Allianz Stadium as soon as possible.

A January move to Villa Park could be explored, with no club willing to seal a loan with an obligation to buy the midfielder in the summer.

The Verdict: Central midfield a priority?

Villa allowed Conor Hourihane to leave for Sheffield United on loan late in the summer transfer window, leaving Dean Smith with five senior central midfield options plus youngster Carney Chukwuemeka.

While that may seem plenty, Villa regularly use three central midfielders in 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 systems, so bringing in another player in that area could be a wise move.

If they don’t, and one or two of their current options get injured, they could be down to the bare bones in the middle, which is not exactly ideal for such an important area of the pitch. Hopefully they might explore a move for McKennie again in January, especially if midfield options become sparse by then.

In other news: Aston Villa announce the signing of 'creative' free agent; has the same agency as Konsa and Steer.