Dean Smith could be about to waste Aston Villa’s transfer funds, with 45% of the club's fanbase suggesting Kortney Hause is not a better alternative to the defensive options already at the club.

Football FanCast asked Villa fans to vote on who they would start at centre-back if Smith can complete a deal for the Wolverhampton Wanderers defender, and the majority said they would choose Tommy Elphick and James Chester over Hause.

The Express and Star reported last Tuesday that discussions were underway between the two sides, just days after Elphick returned from his loan spell at Hull City.

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Elphick then set out on an impressive statement in his first game back in Claret and Blue, winning 11 aerial duels and recording two interceptions, before another 90 minutes in the starting XI came in Saturday’s FA Cup defeat to Swansea.

Hause, meanwhile, has struggled for minutes in gold and black, earning a single call-up to Nuno Espirito Santo’s Championship winning side last season and only two appearances so far this season, both coming in the Carabao Cup.

While the majority of Villa fans who voted in Football FanCast’s recent poll said they would start Elphick and Chester over Hause, 31% claimed they would partner the 23-year-old with Chester instead of the former AFC Bournemouth captain.