The Barnsley right-back has been in fine form this season and could follow Conor Hourihane to Aston Villa.
Aston Villa owner Tony Xia is not the most subtle of operators when it comes to covert transfer market operations. And, thanks to the stalker’s dream that is Twitter, we can pretty much gain an inside track to the Aston Villa’s January dealings.
As of Sunday, Xia is now a keen subscriber to Barnsley defender James Bree’s 140-character musings. And, before you attempt to play down this seemingly insignificant development, it can’t be a coincidence that Villa’s affable owner started following both Nottingham Forest skipper Henri Lansbury and Bree’s Barnsley team-mate Conor Hourihane on Twitter recently.
In the following days, Lansbury finally became an Aston Villa player while, as reported by the Birmingham Mail, Hourihane is on the verge of bringing his playmaking excellence to Steve Bruce’s midfield.
Therefore, don’t be too surprised if 19-year-old right-back Bree is posing in claret and blue before the month is out.
The Sun reported earlier in January that Villa were preparing for an ominous battle with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City for the signature of a player who has thoroughly impressed in his breakthrough season. Bruce even scouted the teenager in person as rumours of a £4 million bid intensified.
And a subtle click of the follow button may just have put Villa within reach of another January deal.
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