Stevens heading to Villa

Left-back Enda Stevens will officially link up with Aston Villa next week and activate the three-year contract he agreed with the club in the summer.

The Republic of Ireland Under-21 international was allowed to remain with Shamrock for the first half of the campaign and compete in the Europa League before moving to Villa in January. And boss Alex McLeish is hoping Stevens can quickly adjust to the demands of the Barclays Premier League and provide competition for Stephen Warnock.

He said: "It will be nice to have another body in the squad and Enda is a player who has got some potential."

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