Aston Villa are starting to justify their pre-season promotion credentials heading towards the New Year, and under the guidance of Dean Smith, they are one of the most feared teams in the Championship. 

Villa are currently sat 8th in the league table and are just five points adrift of the play-off places, which is a remarkable improvement to when Steve Bruce was in charge.

Before Dean Smith took over, Villa were relegation threatened after a dismal run of form, but it's pleasing to see Smith wasting no time in getting the best out of his players.

But could the Aston Villa boss be tempted to dip into the transfer market to add some much-needed depth to his squad?

One player who Smith should certainly be looking at is Newcastle's Isaac Hayden, who has fallen down the pecking order in Rafa Benitez's side this season.

Hayden played a crucial role for the Magpies in the 2016/2017 season when they won promotion back to the Premier League, but he has struggled for regular game time in recent seasons, with this year being no different.

The 23-year-old has made just one start for Newcastle this season, which will be hugely disappointing for Hayden, who has the quality to be playing regular football.

He is sure to be eyeing a move away from the club in the near future, and Aston Villa could be after someone of Hayden's quality to help aid their promotion bid this season.

The former Arsenal youngster can play at both centre-back or in the CDM role, which is certainly something that Aston Villa need in this years campaign.

Dean Smith only has Axel Tuanzebe and James Chester as his recognised central defenders, so he is likely to look into potential deals to provide some competition to the pair who have formed an impressive partnership together.

A move for Hayden would suit both parties and this move could prove to be one of the signings of the season if Villa were to win promotion back to the Premier League after a lengthy spell away from the top flight.

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