Championship giants Aston Villa are reportedly hoping to lure Daniel Amartey away from Leicester City, while raiding the Premier League club for Leo Ulloa.
Leonardo Ulloa is not the only Leicester City man Aston Villa are keen to recruit this month.
The Birmingham Mail stated on Tuesday that Argentine striker Ulloa was keen to leave the King Power Stadium after making just four substitute appearances in the Premier League so far this season.
And while Villa are being restricted in their spending by Financial Fair Play, it is understood that Steve Bruce’s side have enquired about taking the former Brighton talisman on loan for the rest of the season.
The Telegraph, meanwhile, states that Villa also hold an interest in Leicester’s versatile utility man Daniel Amartey.
The Ghanaian, who can play in central midfield or at right-back, was signed by Claudio Ranieri from Copenhagen in January 2015 for about £5 million. Amartey has never really nailed down a starting place at Leicester, however, having made just two starts in the league during 2017/18.
But, if Villa can tempt Leicester into letting Amartey go, it will be interesting to find out where Bruce sees him in his side. Villa are not short of central midfielders, which perhaps suggests that a right-back berth is on the cards.
And considering that the future of Alan Hutton is in doubt, could Villa be seeing Amartey as the Scot’s potential replacement?
According to The Mirror, Championship rivals Middlesbrough are keen on Hutton. And while he is one of the first names on Bruce’s team-sheet, can the cash-strapped Midlanders afford to turn down a transfer fee for a 33-year-old whose contract expires in a few months?
Athletic and aggressive, Amartey could be an affordable, if possibly short-term, replacement.
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