Tom Cleverley targets England recall after completing loan move to Aston Villa

  • Midfielder joins on season-long loan from Manchester United
  • Cleverley fell out of favour at Old Trafford under Louis van Gaal
  • 25-year-old played in seven of England's World Cup qualifiers
  • Everton also tried to sign Cleverley on transfer deadline day 

Tom Cleverley has targeted an England recall after completing his last-ditch switch to Aston Villa.

The midfielder moved to Villa Park on a season-long loan from Manchester United after the Premier League sanctioned the deal.

Villa made a late move before the transfer deadline after initially calling off a permanent deal on Monday because of the player's wage demands.


They then had to wait to see if they had completed the paperwork on time before the move was confirmed on Tuesday.

VIDEO Scroll down for archive footage of Cleverley scoring sublime goal in England training

New challenge: Tom Cleverley (left) completed his loan move to Aston Villa from Manchester United

New challenge: Tom Cleverley (left) completed his loan move to Aston Villa from Manchester United

Cleverley was out of favour at Old Trafford and has also lost his place in the England squad after playing in seven of their 10 World Cup qualifiers.

England host Norway in a friendly on Wednesday and go to Switzerland on Monday for the start of their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign without him.

And Cleverley, who was left out of the Three Lions' World Cup squad this summer, wants to force his way back into boss Roy Hodgson's plans.

'I have got to get back playing and hopefully as a by-product of that I can get back in the England team,' the 25-year-old, who has 13 caps, told the club website.

'The thing I am concentrating on though is trying to come in and hit the ground running so I can help Aston Villa.

Out of favour: Cleverley was in danger of finding himself frozen out at United if he did not secure a move

Out of favour: Cleverley was in danger of finding himself frozen out at United if he did not secure a move

'Playing football is what matters most to me and I'm looking forward to getting back to what I know I can do. This is the kind of club where I can do that.

'The prospect of working under the manager (Paul Lambert) and Roy (Keane, assistant manager), who were both fantastic midfielders in their playing careers, made the decision to come to Villa an easy one.

'I'm looking forward to working with them, but also the other really good midfield players that the club have, like Fabian Delph, Ashley Westwood and other new lads like Kieran Richardson, Joe Cole and Carlos Sanchez.'

Villa had agreed an £8m fee with United, but walked away on Monday after failing to agree personal terms.

All change: Cleverley was a regular under previous boss David Moyes but not under Louis van Gaal

All change: Cleverley was a regular under previous boss David Moyes but not under Louis van Gaal

Everton also tried to sign Cleverley on transfer deadline day, but failed to strike a deal, which then saw Villa resurrect the move. They are believed to have a deal in place to make the loan permanent.

'It's a team that plays the style of football I like,' Cleverley added. 'They play with high energy, they pass and move and there are a lot of good young players. The manager told me the way that he'd like me to play and it all sat perfectly for me. I'm very happy to be coming down to play for Villa.'

Lambert added: 'Tom brings big game experience to the club, he's played international football for England and he still has great potential to kick on in his career.

'There's a lot of good football ahead of him if he performs the way we think he can perform and we're delighted to have been able to bring him in to join the group.'