Aston Villa's patchy form in the past few weeks has seen them fall out of contention for an automatic promotion spot, with the top two looking likely to be occupied by Wolverhampton Wanderers and Cardiff City at the end of the season.

Manager Steve Bruce's side had threatened the runaway pair following an excellent start to the calendar year, but subsequent results and the form of their rivals has a growing gap appear.

If promotion is indeed secured via the lottery of the play-offs then a lot of work will be required by Bruce in the summer to prepare his side for the Premier League and to ensure that their stay extends beyond just a single season.

If Bruce can pull these deals off, his side should be left revitalised...

The recent Republic of Ireland international has struggled since making the mega-money switch from Brentford last year and could be one of the first to depart the club should they secure promotion in the coming weeks.

Finding the net on a consistent basis at Villa Park has proven a challenge, with just five strikes to his name in thirty-one outings this semester.

The 25-year-old thrived at Griffin Park after recovering from multiple long-term injury lay-offs but the system under Bruce has simply not suited the player's skillset and he will only fall further down the pecking order should promotion be achieved.

Hogan's time at the club could be coming to an end.

If Bruce can convince clubs into giving him a decent fee for the Scot, then he will bite their hands off in order to offload the flop.

Prolific during spells with both Leeds United and Fulham, a series of behind the scenes bust ups saw the forward shipped out to Melbourne City in Australia, where he bagged for fun during his time in the state of Victoria.

There will be sides in both English football and abroad that will be willing to take a chance on the striker, whose short spell at Villa Park appears to be over before it even begun.

£9m-rated Gayle has been undervalued and underutilised by Rafa Benitez at St James' Park this season, and Bruce could take advantage of the situation by launching a bid for the former Peterborough man.

Backed by the funds acquired from the sales of Hogan and McCormack, a raid for the prolific goal scorer would significantly enhance Villa's attacking out, especially with Jonathan Kodjia set to return from injury ahead of the new campaign.

Gayle scored on a regular basis in the second-tier at Newcastle and has performed when called upon this season, but it can't help but be felt that Benitez would let the player walk for the right price.

Quick and with an undisputable eye for goal, Gayle is exactly the type of player that will appeal to Bruce during the offseason.

Villa fans, thoughts?