Villa nearing deal to extend key midfielder's contract

The Renaissance of intelligence continues at Villa Park! A report from the Birmingham Mail says that Aston Villa are close to signing a contract extension with midfielder Ashley Westwood. The 25-year-old's current deal runs through the end of the 2016-17 season, but given the fact that he has been one of Villa's most consistent performers, an extension makes lots of sense.

Westwood is rarely ever the flashiest player, and we often see comments on the site saying just that: "I didn't hear Westwood's name at all today!" But those are almost always accompanied by "And yet his numbers were fantastic!" Westwood is an engine in the middle of the park for Villa. His passing accuracy is consistently near the top of the team, he plays well when he is being pressured, and he does a lot to control traffic for the club.

So he's not a player who we all think of as being spectacular, but he is definitely the kind of player that Aston Villa should be using and should be extending. This is a move that could cement a player who arrived from Crewe Alexandra for £900,000 three years ago as a regular starter in a vastly improved Aston Villa side. Not a bad turn of events at all.