Dean Smith is reportedly hoping to make Barry Bannan his first signing following his switch to Aston Villa.
According to a report from the Daily Mirror, Dean Smith has identified Barry Bannan as the player that he wants to make his first signing since being appointed as Aston Villa boss, and the Villans are now preparing an £8 million bid for the Sheffield Wednesday star.
Smith has endured a difficult start to life since succeeding Steve Bruce. After winning his first game at the helm, he has suffered two defeats which leave Villa languishing in the bottom-half of the Championship, six points above the relegation zone.
Unsurprisingly, Smith has earmarked January already as a key month for Villa and the Mirror reports that he has picked out his top target for the winter window.
According to the report, Villa will make an £8 million offer for Bannan, five years after the midfielder left the club. The Mirror reports that Smith feels that the Scotland international should not have been allowed to leave the Villans and now wants him back.
It is unlikely that Wednesday will allow Bannan to leave without a fight. He has appeared in 14 of Jos Luhukay’s side’s 15 league games this term and been a key man in the deep-lying playmaker role.
He was part of the Owls team that went to Villa Park and won 2-1 earlier in the campaign – in a game which will undoubtedly be remembered for John McGinn’s stunning volley – but Smith is hoping that he will be a Villa player by the time the two teams meet again in early April.
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