Villa increase bid for Charlie Adam

Villa's pursuit of Blackpool's Charlie Adam moved up a gear today after making a £3.5million bid as their transfer tug-of-war with Birmingham for the midfielder continues.

The 25-year-old Scotland international was the subject of offers of around £2.5m from the two midlands clubs yesterday, both of which were rejected by the Seasiders.

Adam has been a revelation this season which has seen him also made him the subject of interest of several other Premier League clubs including Sunderland, Bolton and Everton.

Manager Gerard Houllier is keen to add a creative player to Villa's midfield, although Blackpool boss Ian Holloway is reluctant to let Adam leave Bloomfield Road.

Holloway said: "It's true. I have spoken to Charlie, he knows where I am coming from and I know where he is coming from. We have got no reason to sell anyone.

"We are a well-run club and we want to add in this window, not lose anyone.

"We have got him for 18 months on his contract and if one of those top clubs come in then I might have to consider it, but they would have to offer the right amount of money for this club to move forward."

Elsewhere on the transfer front, reports of a swap deal involving Newcastle's Joey Barton and Villa's Nigel Reo-Coker are wide of the mark according to sources at Villa Park.

There had been speculation that Houllier was interested in bringing Barton to the club, but the player's chequered history meant that deal was never on the cards.

However, Villa are still keen on a deal for Lyon midfielder Jean Makoun as negotiations continue with the Ligue 1 side over a fee for the Cameroon international.

The 27-year-old featured in Lyon's 1-1 draw with Auxerre at the weekend and admitted, although he was the top of transfer speculation, he remained completely focused on matters on the pitch.

He said: "I am just trying to concentrate on my game. It is true that there are offers for me, but I still have a contract here and I must respect that.

"There is a lot of talk about me in this transfer window, but it is the same for many players and I need to remain focused on Lyon.

"All I want to do is play, that's what matters."