Villa full-back Nicky Shorey could become the next victim of Martin O’Neill’s plans to overhaul his defence for next season.

Centre-back Zat Knight is in line to join Bolton as soon as Villa bring in another central defender, possibly by the end of the week, with the club still thin on numbers after the retirement of skipper Martin Laursen.

But now the Express & Star understands left-back Shorey may be on his way out too.

Despite Villa’s squad looking decidedly thin on numbers, it is believed the Villa boss has decided to entertain offers for Shorey – currently his only fit recognised left-back with Freddie Bouma still sidelined – if he can recoup around two thirds of the £4.5million fee paid to Reading just a year ago.

O’Neill was prepared to sell the former Leyton Orient man in January but, despite interest from Tottenham and Portsmouth, no offers were tabled.

A move back closer to his London roots would still appear the most likely destination for Shorey, however it is understood the player remains open minded over moving further north.

The England international ended the campaign in Villa’s starting XI but spent five months of the season on the sidelines, after being dropped at the expense of right-back Luke Young.

One player increasingly unlikely to be heading to the Midlands is Sheffield United right-back Kyle Naughton, with Everton and Tottenham having both tabled joint bids for the defender and his Blades team-mate Kyle Walker.