Aston Villa and Middlesbrough are locked in late-window battles to sign West Ham striker Jordan Hugill and Bristol City defender Joe Bryan, according to reports.
The Evening Standard claim the two Championship clubs are both keen to land Hugill from the Hammers before the transfer window shuts on Thursday.
Football Insider report Villa and Boro are also vying for the signature of left-back-Bryan, although the Midlands giants are in pole position after having a £6million bid accepted.
OPINION
It is unsurprisingly Villa and Boro are both after the same players, as the two clubs are both ambitious and have designs on returning to the Premier League. Bryan and Hugill are two players who could be vital to promotion. The City left-back has a mountain of Championship experience despite being only 24 and has showed he is a regular source of goals – he netted seven times last season for the minnow – as well as providing the last line of his side’s defence on the left flank. As for Hugill, he may have plummeted down the pecking order at the London Stadium following a huge summer spending spree in which a galaxy of attacking talent has beefed up the squad but his second-tier credentials are undeniable. In 114 appearances for Preston he scored 30 goals and led the line with increasing conviction before a January move to West Ham that the BBC Sport site report cost around £10million.