Stoke City centre back Harry Souttar is one of the Sky Bet Championship's hottest properties at the time of writing. 

Having previously arrived as a largely unknown quantity back in the summer of 2016 from Dundee United, the defender has seen his game come on leaps and bounds over the past few years.

Known for his height and domineering style of defending, Souttar has stayed the course with the Potters for quite some time now despite having been shipped out on loan to play for the likes of Ross County and Fleetwood Town over the years.

And doing just that has paid off massively for the 22-year-old, who has now firmly established himself as a key player under the guidance of Michael O'Neill at the Bet365 Stadium.

The former Northern Ireland boss has clearly recognised the qualities that the player possesses and it is fair to say that he isn't the only one.

A recent report by Football Insider has touted Aston Villa as being the latest club to enter the race for the centre back's signature alongside the likes of Everton and Tottenham Hotspur.

This in turn means that Souttar's value to the Potters has never been higher from a monetary perspective, particularly as the centre back has the best part of four years left to run on his current contract.

It's clear from this that if he was to move in January, it would be for a substantial amount of money.

And for that reason, Stoke City must consider moving him on as a real possibility, as the income they could receive from such a sale could set them up financially for a good number of years moving forwards.

Admittedly losing Souttar at any point would be a blow but surely the club hierarchy would rather cash in whilst the price is high as opposed to holding onto him for dear life.

Stoke in particular have been guilty of losing high value players for nothing in recent years, which shows that there is a lack of planning when it comes to aiming to make a profit from sales.

In short, selling Souttar would be a step backwards but it could be the step required to move forwards further down the line.