The big Aston Villa billing over reported £1m Portsmouth, Huddersfield Town and Oxford United target
Pompey have been linked with a move for Aston Villa talent Tommi O’Reilly ahead of the summer transfer window.
Pompey have been given an exciting review over reported transfer target Tommi O’Reilly.
The curtain has come down on another season in the Championship at Fratton Park, with the Blues playing out a 1-1 draw against Birmingham City on the final day.
Attention has already turned to the summer behind the scenes at PO4 as John Mousinho bids to bolster his ranks in the upcoming transfer window, which gets underway on June 15.
The versatile forward, who can operate either on the right wing or in the number 10 role, has netted seven goals and collected 11 assists during a hugely-successful loan stint with the Railwaymen.
This has prompted clubs in the Championship and League One to take note, with the Blues joined by Huddersfield Town and Oxford United in the reported race to sign the young talent.
Aston Villa would be willing to sanction a permanent exit for O’Reilly this summer, but are said seeking £1m to secure his services.
The Villa Park academy graduate has been with the West Midlands since the age of seven but has made just one senior appearance, coming off the bench in a Conference League group stage game in 2023.
Exciting Aston Villa verdict over reported Pompey target Tommi O’Reilly
Indeed, his talent didn’t go unnoticed by former Villa boss Steven Gerrard, who kept close tabs on the youngsters progress during his time in the Villa Park hot seat.
O’Reilly was included in four Premier League match-day squads by the ex-Aston Villa head coach during the 2021-22 campaign, having impressed in front of goal at youth level for the Villains.
And after making the step-up to the first-team set-up in 2022, Gerrard touted the forward with a big future after naming the standout qualities of his game.
Speaking to Birmingham Live in February 2022, the 45-year-old said: ‘Tommi O’Reilly has been around for us for experience. We really like his technical ability.
‘We feel, in the long run, that his style can help us but he needs to keep going and to keep learning.
‘We'll keep working with him and we'll keep polishing him up. He's still very slight in terms of his profile so we'll work hard in the gym as well to get him ready from a physical point of view.’
Pompey’s current forward options
Mousinho will no doubt be looking to bolster his right-wing option in the summer, having struggled to nail down a frontline operator this term.
The Blues do have Harvey Blair, Franco Umeh and Adrian Segecic currently contracted ahead of next season, with the future Gustavo Caballero under the spotlight following the conclusion of his loan deal.
Segecic has been Mousinho’s main man on the right throughout large parts of the campaign to fill the void, despite the 21-year-old’s preference of playing more central role.
Meanwhile, Blair and Umeh have both struggled with injuries throughout the season, with the latter registering just two outings in all competitions following his £5000,000 switch from Crystal Palace last summer.