Middlesbrough are looking to sign Aston Villa centre-back James Chester, as reported by Football Insider.

Jonathan Woodgate is said to be in the market for defensive reinforcements, with the 5 foot 11 Villa man near the top of his wishlist.

The Championship side are keeping tabs on the Welshman, who has only made two appearances in all competitions this campaign, none of which have come in the Premier League - though that is largely down to injury.

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He also only has until the end of the season until his contract's culmination, which puts further doubt on his Villa future.

Some Villa fans have outright refused to believe that Chester could be about to leave their club, with one stating that is "a day I do not want to see".

The Welshman has admitted that he sacrificed his body when playing through injury during Villa's promotion campaign, as reported by The Birmingham Mail: “I've damaged my body indefinitely. It's something I'm going to have to manage for the rest of my career."

That dedication has made him a fan favourite and somebody who will be missed if he leaves.

However, the desire to have him as part of their squad is not entirely sentimental, as one fan stated "he should be starting for us now".

The centre-back did put in an impressive performance against Liverpool during the 5-0 Carabao Cup victory, highlighting that he can still prove to be a useful player.

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When it is considered that the team are now coming off the back of a 6-1 annihilation at the hands of Manchester City, some rotation at the back may be welcome.

There has been the suggestion that some fans would be okay with seeing him leave if it is only a loan deal.

Considering the aforementioned lack of game time the centre-back has had, it could be useful for him to go away and get a higher volume of minutes.

However, it has been made clear that they don't want this move to be a permanent one.

Meanwhile, one key Villa figure was slammed after the loss against Man City.