Aston Villa are ticking along quite nicely under Steve Bruce as the New Year fast approaches, but it wasn't always that easy for the Midlanders at the start of the season.

Roberto Di Matteo had a short shift after a disastrous start to the campaign with the Villains, but with former Birmingham City man Steve Bruce now at the helm, things are looking a lot steadier at Villa Park.

Still, with the January transfer window fast approaching, talk has quickly turned to both the players Bruce should bring in and the individuals that he should be letting go.

And one man who has been dominating conversation in the media and amongst supporters in recent weeks is Aaron Tshibola, who has been on the outskirts of the first-team since Steve Bruce's arrival at the club.

He arrived with plenty of expectation but things just don't seem to have panned out and some are growing fed up with him languishing in the U23's.

But here at the FLW, we think he deserves another chance and here are 3 reasons why...

He earned rave reviews at Reading and Hartlepool

Despite his struggle to get into the first-team at Villa, it's easily forgettable the 21-year-old earned some really rave reviews during the past couple of seasons with Reading and a loan spell with Hartlepool.

He was rewarded with a bumper new contract before Villa paid around £5million for his services this summer and that was a testament to his continued development during his time at the Madejski.

Reading fans would have him back in a heartbeat

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It's sometimes easy to forget the sort of quality Aston Villa have in their ranks thanks to the mega-bucks invested in the squad this summer and in any normal Championship squad, Tshibola would be a regular pick from the off.

And a brief look on the Royals' Facebook accounts and forums confirms that most of their supporters would have him back in a heartbeat. The fact they still want him back despite his lack of play-time suggests that he's still got a lot to offer this division, and potentially a team that are in the offing for an automatic promotion place.

Bruce looks ready to give him a chance

Tshibola has been linked with a move away in recent weeks but in a recent interview, Bruce confirmed that he is now ready to offer the burly midfielder another chance.

If the new manager is ready to take a gamble on a player he didn't sign then that's a sign that the club might be best off sticking with his services, even if it is just until the end of the season.