Hull City have Jaden Philogene advantage in new Aston Villa transfer chase | OneFootball

The Tigers will hope their relationship with the Villans can see them edge out a plethora of Championship rivals

Given his form for Stockport County in League One earlier in the season, it comes as no surprise to anyone that Louie Barry has been linked with an array of Championship suitors.

For one reason or another, the likes of Leeds United, Middlesbrough, Derby County, Sunderland and Coventry City among many clubs interested in acquiring the services of the 21-year-old, will be staking their claims as to why a move to each individual club will benefit themselves and Barry in the short and long-term, as Aston Villa are said to be open to a second tier sale.

Millwall are now also keen on striking a loan deal for the highly-rated forward, whilst Hull City have also thrown themselves into the equation, as Ruben Selles looks to add an abundance of quality across all areas of the pitch, despite the Tigers' lowly position in the Championship table.

And, given the successful evidence of Hull and Villa's negotiating skills, as well as the development of Jaden Philogene last term, the East Yorkshire side may have an advantage over their several divisional rivals in this transfer tussle.

Hull City allowed all parties to benefit from previous Jaden Philogene deal

In a similar fashion to Barry at present, plenty of hype surrounded Philogene at the time of his reported £5m move to Hull on Deadline Day in the summer of 2023, with there being prior murmurings that the winger was going to be utilised by Unai Emery in what proved to be a remarkable season for the B6 outfit, who went on to reach the UEFA Conference League semi-finals and secure a first spot in the UEFA Champions League for 41 years.

Villa did have to keep some homegrown talent on their books to purely comply with registration rules. However, this saw the likes of Tim Iroegbunam and Kaine Kesler-Hayden miss out on vital minutes at the current stage of their respective careers, whilst Philogene was gaining all kinds of attention for an array of stellar performances in Black and Amber.

A return of 12 goals and six assists in 32 games in a side packed with talent such as Liam Delap, Tyler Morton and Fabio Carvalho meant that City fans were resigned to losing the services of their star performer after they missed out on the play-offs with a final day defeat to Plymouth Argyle.

And, although the likes of Everton - who are currently in negotiations over a deal with the 22-year-old, Ipswich Town and, at one point, Barcelona, were all heavily linked last June, the insertion of a 'matching-rights' clause, allowed for Emery to swoop under the noses of the newly-promoted Tractor Boys' £18m offer, and regain Philogene's services for a cut-price of £13m as a result of a 30 percent sell-on clause.

Hull City and Aston Villa may look to replicate Jaden Philogene deal with Louie Barry

Villa have had issues relating to PSR since the summer, which meant that the Second City club have had to be savvy in their negotiations, making the aforementioned deal for Philogene look rather impressive on paper, despite his lack of an impact on the pitch.

It has been suggested by the likes of Alan Nixon that Villa have considered the possibility of selling the man who was acquired from La Masia's academy in 2020 for a reported €1m fee, after he pulled out all the stops at Edgeley Park with a ridiculous return and a variety of 15 goals and two assists in 23 games during his second loan stint with the Hatters.

It's no surprise that a potential move to Elland Road, Stadium of Light or Riverside Stadium in particular has been mooted when considering the success all of Leeds, Sunderland and Middlesbrough are enjoying this season, with the latter duo possessing an abundance of leading lights when it comes to EFL talent.

But, regardless of the fact that Philogene's time at Hull was under Liam Rosenior, with Ruben Selles at the helm, City now have yet another head coach with a track record of developing youngsters through his well-documented time in charge of Reading, with the likes of Tyler Bindon and Charlie Savage being linked with Championship sides this window.

The relationship between the hierarchy at the MKM Stadium and Villa Park is a factor which cannot be dismissed in the race to sign Barry on a permanent or loan basis, and it will send a statement out regarding the trust top sides have with the Tigers when it comes to these agreements, even if the short-term objective is to stave off any relegation fear before progressing under the new boss next term.