Birmingham, Bolton and Blackburn want Nigel Reo-Coker in January.

The skipper’s future in Villa is in doubt after making just four Premier League starts so far this season. Reo-Coker and his boss Martin O'Neill were involved in a training ground bust-up earlier in the season but according to the manager it is bygone. Reo-Coker was even named as captain in last week’s 5-1 win over Bolton in Reo-Coker’s first start since September.

But Steve Sidwell and club captain Stiliyan Petrov still remain the first-choice pairing. Taking into account that Villa paid around 10 million for Fabian Delph, O'Neill could be tempted to cash in. Fulham are also interested in the 25-year-old.