Aston Villa are lining up a £5million move for Crystal Palace midfielder James McCarthy.
The 29-year-old only joined last summer from Everton and is a favourite with manager Roy Hodgson but he only has one year left on contract and Villa are keen to take advantage.
Villa are relaxing their policy on only buying players under 28 as they lacked experience at times during their relegation fight and McCarthy fits the profile as a proven Premier League performer.
He made 35 appearances last season after making a full recovery from the double leg fracture he suffered at Everton in 2018.