He told the Birmingham Evening Mail: "I'm getting to a stage now where I do need a new challenge, and whether it's a loan or a move in January or whenever, we'll wait and see.
"A loan would be nice, but the gaffer hasn't pulled me aside and told me clubs are interested, so as yet things are quite stale.
"I'm getting to the age now where I need to be playing, I don't need to be sitting on the sidelines. I've been doing that for eight or nine months.
"It's something I've never had to do throughout my career and it's not a very nice situation to be in, so basically I just want to play football - whether it's at Villa or elsewhere.
"I'm out of contract in July, and I'm hopeful something will happen in January in the 'window', or if not, the close season. I can't honestly see me being at Villa the way things are at the club."