"?Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce has reportedly made a formal offer to Middlesbrough for their striker Jordan Rhodes.
The new Villa manager was initially keen on signing the player on a loan deal, but according to the "?Mirror, those plans have been scuppered, and Bruce now wants the player on a permanent basis.
Rhodes has long been a point of attraction for Bruce, who wanted to sign him back when he was in charge of Hull City. However, he signed Abel Hernandez instead. He is now back on the forward's scent, and sees him as a player who can come in and help the team get back into the Premier League.
Villa have struggled to score goals as of late, with just five being registered in their last nine matches. Their main striker Jonathan Kodjia is away taking part in the Africa Cup of Nations, while both Ross McCormack and Jordan Ayew have been misfiring.
"We're missing our main striker which isn't easy. If that's as good as we can muster, it's going to be a long old slog," he said to the Birmingham Mail after Villa recorded a 1-0 loss against Wolves on Saturday.
"He is coming back but we don't want to put all our eggs into him. If there's people that can help us then of course it's my job to make sure we get better."
Rhodes, meanwhile, hasn't scored a single goal in the Premier League this season, but hit 16 for the Teessiders last term.