Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Wolves will battle it out in January to sign Manchester United goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, according to The Mirror.
The former Preston loanee finds himself way down the pecking order at the Premier League giants, with David De Gea and Sergio Romero keeping him out of the squad, and a return to the Championship seems likely this winter, as according to reports, he has been told he will be allowed to leave Old Trafford temporarily once again.
Johnstone impressed at Deepdale; he was a key member of Preston’s promotion campaign two seasons ago, and a string of fine performances as the last line of defence last season helped to consolidate the Lilywhites’ place in the second tier.
Villa have suffered a poor start to the season by their high standards, languishing in mid table while fellow relegated clubs Norwich and Newcastle battle it out for a promotion place, and new arrival Pierluigi Gollini has at times looked fairly substandard between the sticks.
Likewise, Nottingham Forest have struggled to recover from losing Karl Darlow and Dorus de Vries in recent years, and while they have an experienced stopper in Stephen Henderson, they could surely do with added defensive stability in their attempt to recover from their forgettable recent league performances.
Wolves also find themselves near the foot of the league table, and new boss Paul Lambert may look to Johnstone in an attempt to help soak up as many points as possible if they end up in a relegation battle – each and every point matters in the Championship as such teams look to avoid the drop.
Despite having been at the club since 2011, Preston-born stopper Johnstone is yet to make a single competitive appearance for United, but has been shipped out on loan eight times.
