Wigan Athletic and Leyton Orient in race to sign Aston Villa player before February 2nd | OneFootball

Wigan Athletic and Leyton Orient are both tracking Aston Villa starlet and England Under-19 international Ben Broggio.

Wigan Athletic and Leyton Orient have both turned their attention to Aston Villa's academy, as they battle to make signings who can help them avoid relegation to League Two.

The Latics sit just one point and two places above the League One drop zone after being beaten 2-0 by Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday, courtesy of Caolan Boyd-Munce's early penalty and Cauley Woodrow's second-half strike.

Orient were also defeated on Tuesday, losing 3-0 to relegation rivals Doncaster Rovers, who have scored seven goals in their last three league games.

Richie Wellens's men sit 18th in League One, just one point above Wigan, and two points clear of the relegation zone.

Wigan Athletic and Leyton Orient track Aston Villa starlet Ben Broggio

The Latics and Orient both need all the help they can get to ensure that they beat the likes of Doncaster and Northampton Town in the battle to avoid relegation from the third tier to League Two.

Wigan have already completed loan deals for midfielder Owen Moxon and striker Joe Taylor this month, albeit the duo can be seen as like-for-like replacements for former loan players Ollie Cooper and Paul Mullin.

Meanwhile, the O's have signed Will Forrester on a permanent deal from Bolton Wanderers, whereas Kaelan Casey and Ajay Matthews have joined on loan from West Ham United and Millwall, respectively.

According to Sky Sports reporter Mark McAdam via X, both the Latics and Orient are tracking Aston Villa and England Under-19 winger Ben Broggio, who is highly thought of by the West Midlands club.

League One loan move for Ben Broggio could suit all parties

Broggio is a talented winger, as demonstrated by the fact that he has represented England at Under-19 level, having previously played for the Young Lions' Under-18, Under-16 and Under-15 set-ups.

Furthermore, he made a senior appearance for Villa in the 2024/25 Carabao Cup campaign, appearing as a substitute against Wycombe.

However, that outing against Wycombe is the only senior appearance he has made for Unai Emery's men, proving that he needs more game time beyond youth football.

The fact that both Wigan and Orient currently find themselves locked in a League One relegation battle shows that they desperately need more quality among their ranks, and could hand Broggio the minutes he needs to further his development.

Villa have shown how much they rate the 18-year-old by naming him in matchday squads for recent fixtures against Maccabi Tel Aviv and Liverpool in the Europa League and Premier League, respectively, although he was an unused substitute.

Emery's men would be grateful to see Broggio earn regular game time for either the Latics or the O's, as they vie to build for the future and continue their stay as one of the top-flight's powerhouses.

Meanwhile, the teenager could favour a move to Orient over making the loan switch to Wigan, as he is a winger by trade, whereas the Greater Manchester club don't stray from their back-five system.