Aston Villa are targeting former Birmingham City striker Sam Gallagher, according to The Birmingham Mail.

Southampton striker Gallagher has spent the last two seasons out on loan in the Championship and Aston Villa are hoping to sign him on loan for the upcoming campaign.

The 22-year-old hit 12 goals in 47 games for Blackburn Rovers in the 2016/17 season before scoring seven in 34 games for Birmingham last season.

The towering 6ft 4in centre-forward recently scored for Southampton in their pre-season winner over Chinese club Jiangsu Suning.

Steve Bruce is a long-term admirer of Gallagher and wants to bring him in to compete for the striker spot.

Ross McCormack will be allowed to leave this summer while Scott Hogan and Jonathan Kodjia are attracting attention from Sheffield United and Leeds United respectively.

Southampton are also keen on Aston Villa forward Keinan Davis so could look to use him as a makeweight in any deal seeing Gallagher move to Villa Park.

The Verdict

Gallagher provides a different option for Aston Villa and he is not a bad option as a back-up if Hogan, Kodjia and McCormack depar.

But the former England under-21 international is yet to prove that he is the man to lead the line in a Championship attack.

Aston Villa fans may be underwhelmed by this news but given their financial problems, a loan move could be the best they can hope for.

Aston Villa fans - Would you like to sign Gallagher? Let us know below...

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