Portsmouth and Oxford United 'battling' to sign Huddersfield Town-linked Tommi O'Reilly from Aston Villa
Huddersfield Town-linked Aston Villa playmaker Tommi O’Reilly linked with Portsmouth and Oxford United
Portsmouth and Oxford United are reportedly battling to sign Huddersfield Town-linked playmaker Tommi O’Reilly from Aston Villa.
The 22-year-old has not yet managed a first-team breakthrough at Villa but has thrived on loan at Crewe Alexandra this season.
A versatile attacking outlet, O’Reilly has weighed in with seven goals and 12 assists over the course of 45 appearances in League Two.
Huddersfield Town-linked playmaker at centre of ‘battle’
Last month, it was suggested both Huddersfield and Bolton Wanderers were on the trail of the Villa prospect.
He now appears to be in the sights of Portsmouth and Oxford, who reporter Alan Nixon has credited with interest via his Patreon page.
It has been suggested he will speak to both with the expiry of his loan deal at Crewe nearing expiry. Talk of further interest in O’Reilly does not come as a surprise, but may galvanise other clubs with eyes on him.
He is under contract a Villa Park until 2028 and it remains to be seen whether it will be a permanent deal or a loan arrangement clubs seek this summer.
The summer ahead at Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield know they will be in League One again next season having seen their push for a top-six finish peter out.
It is not yet clear who will be overseeing the summer rebuild, with head coach Liam Manning on compassionate leave and Jon Stead and Martin Drury at the helm on a temporary basis.
After Huddersfield’s 4-1 defeat to Mansfield Town at the weekend, Stead said: “Obviously, things need to be fixed. Problems need to be solved, as they do at every football club.
“Yes, we're assessing stuff, but it's hard because we're unsure at the minute what's going to happen next season. Even as staff, your own roles are a bit uncertain.
“You're just trying to tick as many boxes as you can and make sure we're giving the right information to the people above so that they can make the right decisions. We're all working on that day-to-day and I'm sure things will become a lot clearer probably from the end of next week onwards, I would have thought.”