Villa hope to sign Dunne and offload Shorey, Everton line up Heitinga

Manchester City centre back Richard Dunne is undergoing a medical at Aston Villa as Martin O'Neill moves to strengthen his defence as the deadline looms.

Dunne became surplus to requirements at City when Mark Hughes signed Joleon Lescott and the Villa boss is anxious to bolster his back line after selling Zat Knight to Stoke and seeing Curtis Davies struggle with a shoulder injury.

Villa are expected to pay around £6m for Dunne, and Martin O'Neill is also set to make a move for West Ham defender James Collins.

Last week Villa also signed fellow defender Stephen Warnock from Blackburn - and that could have repercussions for team mate Nicky Shorey.

Portsmouth are said to be close to signing the Villa full-back on a season-long loan. Shorey has been a regular in the side this term, but the arrival of Warnock could leave him out in the cold. The England international joined Villa last summer from Reading, but has been unable to hold down a regular place.

Everton are hopeful of agreeing a deal for Atletico Madrid's Dutch defender Johnny Heitinga before the transfer window closes.

David Moyes says a fee of £5m has been agreed, but the Holland international has not yet given an indication over whether a move will be completed and Atletico are not looking to offload him.

Celtic are hoping to secure the signing of Argentinean Juan Carlos Menseguez on a season-long loan.

Manager Tony Mowbray signed the striker for West Bromwich Albion last term and now wants to take him north of the border.

Stoke City have completed the signing of defender Danny Collins from Sunderland for a fee of £2.75million. ·