Return of the Mac for Bruce
ROSS McCORMACK will be returning to Aston Villa for preseason after making up with boss Steve Bruce.
Villa’s £12million stiker has been told he has a major part to play in the club’s promotion push next year and is committed to returning in first-class shape.
Bruce wants to link McCormack with £9m strike partner Scott Hogan and the hitman is vowing to give it his best shot ahead of a return to training next month.
There have been a couple of enquiries for the Scot since the end of the campaign, but Villa are unwilling to allow him to leave.
Bruce has accepted that the forward is focused and will complete a summer of work before linking up once more with his team-mates at Bodymoor Heath.
The Geordie offered McCormack a truce after a horrific opening season for the former Scotland star in Birmingham.
Issues
The ex-Leeds United and Fulham forward had been struggling since making a switch from Craven Cottage.
And the situation did not improve when Bruce took over. In fact, it worsened when the player failed to turn up to training and Villa’s boss drove to his house after he gave the excuse that the electric gates would not open.
A loan move to Nottingham Forest last January also failed to ignite a spark and McCormack was unofficially signed off.
It later transpired that he was struggling with personal and medical issues, undergoing major dental surgery to rectify them.
Bruce has been told that he has just limited funds to spend next season, so getting his man back on track was a priority.
Meanwhile, Villa chief executive Keith Wyness has requested a personal hearing after being hit with a charge by the FA.
He re-tweeted a post after a penalty decision against Villa in their final game of the season.
The post read: “Referees in this league actually have disabilities.”
Wyness has since apologised, but not before disability campaigners criticised him. The FA have charged him with disrepute.