Aston Villa defender James Chester looks set to snub a move from recently relegated Stoke City in favour of staying at the Midlands club, according to The Daily Mail.
Stoke boss Gary Rowett had been determined to land the Welsh defender, but he appears to have lost out on signing the Villa centre back.
The former Derby manager had set his sights on signing Championship proven players this summer, and Chester was at the top of his wanted list.
After failing to win promotion back to the Premier League last season, Villa have hit financial woe and will have to sell a number of their star assets in order to balance the books.
It is understood that the Potters have mae an offer worth £10m for the defender, but the former Hull City man has rejected it in favour of staying at Steve Bruce’s side.
Chester is currently the only senior centre back on the books at Villa Park, after the departures of John Terry, Chris Samba, and Axel Tuanzebe.
Thee 29 year old joined the club in 2016 from fellow Midlanders West Bromwich Albion.
His fine displays at Euro 2016 attracted the interest of Steve Bruce and the former Birmingham manager acted swiftly in order to secure his services.
He has made 85 league appearances for the club since his arrival, and played every minute that he was available last season.
Despite the financial uncertainty surrounding Villa at the moment, Chester has pledged his future to the club and will hope to mount another promotion push next season.
