Fulham in the hunt for troubled Irish midfielder

Irish midfielder Stephen Ireland wants a move away from Aston Villa in January, with Fulham a likely destination for the troubled star, according to the Daily Star.

Lex-Luther lookalike Ireland has failed to settle in Birmingham since moving to the Villains as part of the deal that saw James Milner join Manchester City in August.

Ireland has started only five of Villa’s 14 Premier League games this season and was substituted in all but one of them.

New Villa boss Gerard Houllier hasn’t been enamoured with Ireland’s attitude and has criticised him in public, saying “He needs to work harder. The skill is one thing, but you need to compete. We know he’s a good player. I don’t want to say, ‘He’s a good player ... but’.”

Houllier is obviously unfamiliar with the hours upon hours Ireland spends kickboxing training which he has talked about repeatedly in the media and claims has given him the energy and stamina required to be the box to box midfielder he believes he can be.

The situation is believed to have come to a head for Ireland during Sunday’s defeat to Blackburn, when he was replaced by veteran new signing Robert Pires, despite the fact that youngsters Barry Bannan and Jonathan Hogg were still on the pitch.

Fulham boss, Mark Hughes, who worked with Ireland at Manchester City is believed to be keen on a reunion with Ireland, but may struggle to stump up the £8million (€9.5 million) it would take to prise him away from Villa Park.