The 32-year-old midfielder is a free agent after leaving MLS side Montreal Impact in January.
There was a blast from the past for Aston Villa fans on Monday morning as a report emerged which linked former midfielder and stand-in captain Nigel Reo-Coker with a return to the club after five years.
Reo-Coker has most recently been playing in MLS with Canadian side Montreal Impact, but was released from his contract in January and has been without a club since.
With the transfer window closed and no emergency window in place, UK clubs are now limited to free agents if they want to further boost their squad before January.
Reo-Coker’s name has cropped up this week, and the 32-year-old has been linked by the Daily Star with Old Firm rivals Celtic and Rangers, as well as a host of Championship clubs.
One of those is Villa, for whom the midfielder played 123 games in all competitions in a four-year spell from 2007 to 2011 under Martin O’Neill and Gerard Houllier.
Reo-Coker remains a favourite of some Villa supporters five years on from his exit, but to take a punt on re-signing him would undoubtedly be a gamble.
The former West Ham man has not played in England in nearly four years since leaving Ipswich Town in January 2013, since turning out for MLS sides Vancouver Whitecaps, Chivas USA, and Montreal Impact.
Reacting to the reports on Twitter, suggestions of Reo-Coker’s return split opinion amongst Villa supporters, perhaps unsurprisingly.
Some believed that he could still do a job protecting the back four and would add another competitive central midfield option, arguably one of Villa’s weakest areas.
Others, however, were more sceptical…
Luckily for the supporters who weren’t so keen on the idea of Reo-Coker returning, Villa owner Tony Xia appeared to swiftly dispel the reports on Twitter.
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