Aston Villa have contacted West Brom over the availability of Matt Phillips, report Football Insider.

The club have not set an asking price for the winger and it is unlikely they would be willing to sell, as he is a key part of Slaven Bilic's plans.

However, Phillips only has a year remaining on his current deal and therefore The Baggies could look to cash in on him instead of losing him on a free, as they have done previously this summer with the sales of Craig Dawson and Jay Rodriguez.

They could change their strategy with Phillips, though, as there are just ten days remaining in the transfer window, so would be rushed to identify and sign a replacement.

Villa have signed ten players already this summer but there is no sign of the club relenting, with winger Marvelous Nakamba looking likely to sign from Club Brugge.

The Verdict

This is bad news for West Brom and their summer appears to be getting increasingly worse in terms of players leaving the club.

They have lost significant players and if Phillips leaves it would signal the departure of more Premier League experience, which is a blow for their play-off ambitions.

Bilic has spoken about needing to add to the squad due to the numerous departures this summer, and his job would become even more difficult if he had another important player to replace.

The Baggies have recruited well this summer, but it could be the players they have lost which could prevent them from competing for promotion this year, so it is vital they keep hold of a player of Phillips' quality.