Aston Villa midfielder Gary Gardner says brother Craig wants to leave Sunderland.

He believes former Villa and Birmingham player Craig has found it a wrench to leave the his home area.

Gary Gardner, who made his Premier League debut in the win over Wolves on Saturday, said: "We still speak every day and we're really close. He came back over last weekend.

"I would love for him to come back to the Midlands with Aston Villa and play alongside him but who knows?

"There are six brothers altogether and we're a close family. We all see each other almost every day. I didn't think Craig realised how hard it would be to pull away from that.

"I think he does find it hard, but he is the type of lad to get his head down and just keep fighting.

"I am sure he would want to come back to the Midlands but he is a Sunderland player at the moment and I'd imagine the fans would want to keep him there."