Newcastle United have denied the claim from Doug Ellis that Aston Villa have settled on a fee to take Craig Bellamy and Aaron Hughes to the midlands. Ellis, the Villa chairman, professed that his side were closing in on the Newcastle pair, but a statement from St James' Park indicated that he jumped the gun.

"Despite reports to the contrary, Newcastle United have not agreed any fees with Aston Villa over the sale of Craig Bellamy and Aaron Hughes," said a statement on the club's official website. "News broke saying the pair were close to completing a move to Villa Park, but Newcastle confirm this report is incorrect and say no fees have been agreed with any club."

It had earlier appeared as though Villa were poised to make their second and third signings of the summer, adding the Newcastle duo to the signing of Patrik Berger, who will join on a free transfer from Portsmouth in July.

Ellis had claimed: "I have spoken with Freddy Shepherd, the Newcastle chairman, on several occasions in the last 48 hours and last night he accepted our cash offer for both players."

But Bellamy's future now looks as uncertain as ever. The player had a public falling-out with Graeme Souness, the Newcastle manager, in January and has been told he will never play for Newcastle again, but his form since joining Celtic on loan on deadline day has put him in the shop window. The 25-year-old scored nine times in 13 appearances propelling Celtic closer to the Scottish Premier League title. They they can clinch the championship this weekend with victory at Motherwell.

But the prospects of the Welshman staying north of the border are slim, with Villa and several other Premiership clubs thought to be interested. Despite his outburst against Souness, after the manager accused him of feigning injury to avoid playing in midfield against Arsenal, the former Coventry and Norwich player remains a proven goalscorer. Villa's forward have struggled to hit the net all season with Juan Pablo Angel, their top scorer, netting just seven times in the Barclays Premiership.

It remains to be seen whether Newcastle succeed in recouping the £6 million they paid Coventry for Bellamy, wherever he may play next season.

However, they would not lose out on Hughes, 25, who was brought to Newcastle by Kevin Keegan in 1995 and has emerged from the youth ranks to become a first-team fixture over several seasons. The 2004-05 campaign was one of mixed fortunes for the defender who has been troubled by injuries and was told recently he required a hernia operation.

Ellis recently vowed to loosen the Villa Park purse-strings and back O'Leary in the transfer market, after a rash of injuries left the first team thin on numbers and experience for much of the past season.

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