Out-of-contract centre-back Christopher Samba may have moved closer to earning a contract at Aston Villa, with the Birmingham Mail revealing that he played another 60 minutes for the club’s Under-23 side in a friendly against Wolves at Molineux on Monday.

What’s the story, then?

Well, the former Blackburn Rovers and QPR man has been without a club since January when he was released by Greek side Panathinaikos, and he also had a trial with Premier League outfit Crystal Palace later that month – but manager Sam Allardyce decided against giving the 32-year-old a contract.

How did he perform on Monday?

Seeing as he hasn’t played much football at all since November, he didn’t do too bad at all.

While he was understandably rusty at times, Samba also showed a lot of composure in possession and showed glimpses of the player that was such a hit for Rovers in the Premier League.

Do Villa actually need him?

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Aston Villa's Tommy Elphick celebrates after Rudy Gestede scored their second goal 
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With James Chester, Nathan Baker and Tommy Elphick to choose from at the current moment, Villa don’t seem to be in desperate need of a new centre-back.

But in what has been a disappointing season for the Villans, who are 13th after three straight Championship victories, manager Steve Bruce may want to add some height and experience to his back four, and there are few better options on the market right now to do that than Samba.

Could we see him against Huddersfield in the league on Tuesday?

While Steve Bruce’s side has suffered a number of injuries in recent weeks, it is unlikely that Samba will be in contention to make the squad on Tuesday as he still looks to build up his fitness – especially after appearing for 60 minutes on Monday – but it appears to be more and more likely that he will earn a contract at Villa Park.