Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert is looking to trim the wage bill by allowing midfielder Stephen Ireland to leave the club this summer, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The former Manchester City playmaker has not featured for Villa in the Premier League since last December when the Midlands club were beaten 3-0 by now relegated Wigan.

Lambert has made it clear that he is looking to young players during his time at Villa Park and despite nearly being relegated last season, the former Norwich boss is sticking to that tactic.

Fellow older heads Darren Bent, Shay Given and Alan Hutton have all also been given the green light to end their Aston Villa nightmares this summer.

Ireland is costing Villa £60,000-per-week at present and the other departing players are not far short of that leaving the big spending Villains with some extra funds to spend this summer once the wage bill is trimmed.

[cat_link cat="aston-villa" type="grid"]