Steve Bruce hopes Aston Villa hand Alan Hutton new contract

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Alan Hutton’s Aston Villa contract expires at the end of the season, but Steve Bruce hopes to keep him around.

In comments reported by the Express and Star, Steve Bruce has confirmed that if it was down to him, Alan Hutton would be handed a new contract at Aston Villa ahead of the summer.

The Express and Star reports that Hutton’s deal expires at the end of the season and there is currently a major question mark lingering over whether the Scotsman will be handed fresh terms at Villa Park.

Hutton has enjoyed a fantastic end to the campaign and backed that up with a superb performance during the Villans’ play-off semi-final first-leg tie with Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium last week which saw the visitors take a 1-0 lead into Tuesday’s second-leg. And ahead of the game, Bruce admitted that he could not praise the 33-year-old high enough.

“I’ve continued to say this about Alan Hutton. He is everything I enjoy about a player,” said Bruce, as reported by the Express and Star. “He goes home, is one of the first in, and you can see his fitness levels at 33 are quite remarkable.

“He’s been terrific since I’ve been here. If I get my way there will certainly be a contract offered to him.”

While he should not be the first choice full-back if Villa go up – and some fans may argue that he should not be in the side’s strongest XI even if they fail to secure promotion – it is not difficult to see why Bruce would prefer to keep the veteran beyond this summer.

Hutton has been excellent this term and is showing few signs of slowing down despite his age suggesting that he is edging towards the twilight of his career.

He would certainly be an excellent option to have amongst the side next season, even if he is not first-choice. And if Villa decide against handing him fresh terms, it seems unlikely that he will struggle to find another team in the Championship or elsewhere who are keen to have him in the ranks next year.