Manchester United reportedly face the prospect of missing out on signing Jack Grealish this summer if the Premier League season is declared null and void.
The future of the 2019-20 campaign remains up in the air as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which has brought football to a halt until April 30 at the earliest, although the shutdown is likely to go on for longer than that.
Most clubs remain committed to completing the season if they can, but a growing number are thought to see cancellation as a realistic possibility if the end of the campaign was to extend beyond June 30.
Should that be the case then The Mirror reports that Villa could benefit in two ways - firstly by avoiding relegation to the Championship and secondly by keeping hold of Grealish.
Villa accept that they will have no choice but to sell their captain should they suffer relegation this season, but hope to convince him to stay at his boyhood club if they secure another year in the Premier League.
United have been strongly linked with the 24-year-old and are still considering a bid of as much as £80m when the transfer window reopens, despite Grealish being forced into an apology after allegedly crashing his car while ignoring government guidelines to stay indoors during the coronavirus lockdown.
However, Villa are also ready to offer the uncapped midfielder a lucrative new contract should they stay in the division, which they hope will be enough for him to ignore the lure of Old Trafford.
Grealish came through the ranks at Villa and has made 177 appearances for the first team, scoring nine goals and creating eight more in 31 outings this season.
Barney Corkhill
