David Moyes has burst back into the running to be Aston Villa's next manager, according to a report in a national newspaper today.

It was believed to be a straight shoot-out between Nigel Pearson, the choice of current chairman Steve Hollis and Roberto Di Matteo, who new owner Tony Xia confirmed was on his shortlist.

But the Mail on Sunday are reporting that Moyes is now the front-runner for the job.

Watch Tony Xia's first Villa interview

They claim that Moyes impressed Xia's representatives during a lengthy meeting at the former Everton, Manchester United and Real Sociedad's boss's home on Thursday evening.

Interestingly the Mail's Moyes piece carried the byline of reporter, Nick Harris, the same journalist who interviewed Xia in Beijing this week.

The story has sparked a flood of betting on Moyes, reducing his odds with bookies.

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Keith Wyness, who is expected to become Villa's new chief executive, worked with Moyes at Goodison Park.