Martin O'Neill, the Aston Villa manager, has dismissed speculation linking Gareth Barry with a move to Chelsea.

Avram Grant, the Chelsea manager, is thought to be keen to bring the England international to Stamford Bridge this summer after watching the 27-year-old become a regular on the international stage under Steve McClaren and now Fabio Capello. However, O'Neill is refusing to entertain the prospect of losing his influential captain who is due to celebrate ten years at Villa Park in May.

"I don't know where these stories are coming from" O'Neill said. "Gareth has another two-and-a-bit years left on his contract. He has been linked with Chelsea for a couple of seasons now but no-one from Chelsea has ever contacted me about him and they have had a couple of managers [Grant and Jose Mourinho] and the same chief executive [Peter Kenyon] during that time.

"Gareth is a quality player and, after breaking into the England set-up, he has solidified his place in the squad, which has been great for his confidence.

"He was back to his very best last weekend [against Bolton] after a slump which all of us had been experiencing for a week or two before that."

Barry, who signed a new four-year contract after O'Neill's arrival at Villa Park in 2006, made his debut in May 1998 and is close to completing 400 appearances for the club.