Henri Lansbury could be on his way to Aston Villa after a £50m takeover bid for Nottingham Forest fell through.
According to a report in the Birmingham Mail the club received a £2.2m loan used to pay the December wages in anticipation of the takeover going through.
With the collapse of the offer from the John Jay Moors group that loan has to be repaid while the clock ticks towards the demands of the January payroll.
Villa have an offer close to £3m sitting on the table for Lansbury with the midfielder out of contract at the end of the season.
With no sign of Forest being able to offer the midfielder a new deal to stay on at the City Ground the prospect of a quick deal must be getting more attractive.
Lansbury has been left out of Forest’s last two matches despite the club slipping towards the relegation zone.