Villa's Gabby set for new four-year deal in the summer

The 27-year-old joined the claret and blues as a youngster and is the longest serving player on the club's books.

He has one-year left on his current deal but is poised to begin negotiations over an extension which would see him remain at Villa into his 30s when the season finishes.

Fabian Delph and captain Ron Vlaar are also poised to sign new contracts as Villa move to tie down the majority of their squad for the long-term.

Manager Paul Lambert is thought to be in discussions over his own future and is expected to sign an extension before the end of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Libor Kozak has upped his recovery from a broken leg after coming off his crutches,Lambert revealed today. The £7m striker is improving after being ruled out until the summer following an accidental training ground clash with Ciaran Clark in January.

The club are hopeful Kozak could return for pre-season and Lambert backed him to continue his impressive rehab.

"He's doing great," he said. "That's him off the crutches now. I think he's in a much happier place within himself now as well.

"The thing with Kozak is he's a top boy so you know that with his rehabilitation he'll knuckle down.

''He'll not cut any corners. He'll have good days and bad days because of the mental stress of it but he will do his utmost to get fit.

"He's on course. We're hoping that pre-season he'll not be too far away."

Kozak scored four goals in 15 games for Villa after signing from Lazio last summer before being sidelined.

But Lambert admitted the 24-year-old had struggled after suffering an injury so soon after joining the club.

"I think coming off the crutches will be a major step," Lambert added.