ASTON VILLA have agreed a whopping £28,000 a week contract with highly-rated Barnsley midfielder Conor Hourihane.

The mega-deal would more than quadruple the Irishman’s current wages in the hope of securing his signature in a tug of war with Sheffield Wednesday.

3 Conor Hourihane is set to earn an incredible £28,000-a-week at Aston Villa Credit: PA:Press Association Archive

Both clubs have submitted bids of around £1.25 million but Villa are prepared to go to extraordinary lengths on personal terms to win the race.

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Hourihane, 25, is out of contract at the end of the season and is on the wish-list of several Championship clubs.

Villa boss Steve Bruce worked with Hourihane at Sunderland where he came through the youth ranks, which is why he is willing to push the boat out for the playmaker who has also scored five goals this season.

3 Steve Bruce is set to win the race for the Barnsley captain Credit: Getty Images

3 Henri Lansbury is also likely to join Aston Villa Credit: Reuters

Hourihane is yet to win a senior international cap for Ireland but has been called up into several national squads and won eight caps for Ireland Under-21s.

Villa have also been chasing Nottingham Forest skipper Henri Lansbury who is out of contract this summer.

Bruce wants to invest big now to build a squad capable of winning promotion this season and being able to stay up should they reach the Premier League after one year in the Championship.