Nigel Adkins has revealed that Aston Villa “have not made any calls” to bring back Tommy Elphick from his loan deal with Hull City, meaning a January return looks highly unlikely. Dean Smith has been desperate to bolster Villa’s defence, signing James Collins on a free transfer last month, but an injury blow to the Welshman could mean he doesn’t feature before his contract expires in January.
Prior to his sacking, Steve Bruce loaned out Elphick to Hull City before the summer transfer window closed, leaving Villa with only James Chester and Axel Tuanzebe at centre-back. Alan Hutton and Mile Jedinak can operate as makeshift defenders, but the Midlands outfit need a more natural option and Elphick was mooted as the ideal player given his upturn in form at Hull.
Adkins said to Hull Live: “From our point of view, Villa have not made any calls to us to say that they want Tommy back. Tommy is here, he’s doing well and he’s enjoying it. The January window is a great window for speculation and all the things that go on, but we have to keep our finger on the pulse for what is going on. I’d like to keep the group of players we’ve got together.”
Villa may look to the transfer market in January to strengthen their backline, with Chelsea’s young centre-back Ethan Ampadu being linked, in addition to the Blues’ veteran Gary Cahill. Smith may be more open to a permanent deal, however, as he wants to work with players who will stay at Villa past next summer. Whether his decision not to look at Elphick says anything about his future at Villa Park remains to be seen.
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