• Sinclair’s City career never really got started after move from Swansea • Switch will be confirmed now that Villa have secured Premier League status

Scott Sinclair is set to join Aston Villa in a £2.5m move that signals the end of a Manchester City career that never really got started. The 26-year-old made only three starts for City after joining the club from Swansea City in 2012 and his switch to Villa, the club at which he has been on loan since January, will be confirmed now that the Midlands side have secured their Premier League status.

It is understood that Villa agreed a deal with City in January that included a clause that guaranteed the winger’s loan would become permanent in the event of the club staying up – something that was confirmed on Saturday. However, it remains to be seen how much Sinclair will feature at Villa Park in the long term, given that he has been used sparingly by Tim Sherwood since returning from a hamstring injury and the change in playing system that he has implemented.

Sinclair appeared for an eight-minute cameo in the 6-1 defeat against Southampton on Saturday and was not in the squad the week before, when Villa beat West Ham 1-0. Furthermore, with Sinclair arriving at the club prior to Sherwood taking over from Paul Lambert in February, the Villa manager admitted he was not aware that an agreement was in place.

“I think there’s a discussion to be had at the end of the season. I’m not sure if it [a permanent deal] is cast in stone and I haven’t got confirmation of that,” Sherwood said.

“Is there a decision to make on him? Yeah. The injuries interrupted him but we have changed the style and the way we play a little bit. He’s been training, still a good lad, a good player. He hasn’t become a bad player or anything like that. I think if we go back to wide players then Scott will be an automatic choice to play there.”