Martin O'Neill has admitted the impressive form of Marlon Harewood allowed him to loan Luke Moore to West Brom with a view to a permanent deal.Moore is expected to complete the switch to Albion on Friday before making a £3million permanent move in May.

The beginning of the 93-day loan period on Friday would make him eligible to play in the Championship play-off final if the Baggies fail to gain automatic promotion.

The 22-year-old has made it clear he wants a fresh start after rejecting a new contract from Villa before Christmas.

But it is the emergence of Harewood which gave O'Neill the breathing space to allow Moore to leave at this juncture.

The former West Ham player has still to start a Premier League game since his summer switch but he has made a telling contribution as a substitute in recent games with Liverpool and Newcastle.

O'Neill said: "One of the things that made the decision to allow Luke Moore to leave a wee bit easier has been the performances of Marlon Harewood.

"He has still not started a Premier League game for us but has had a major impact in matches coming off the bench.

"That is great for Marlon, and he feels much more part of it than ever before which is really terrific.

"When he was not involved much in terms of playing, he just got his head down and worked hard to try and make an impression and he is getting his reward now.

"I thought he rejuvenated us against Newcastle in the second half. He has made a big impact in recent times, starting at Liverpool, and he is thinking to himself 'I'll get the start soon'.

"He was ready for it against Newcastle. I thought he was great and caused them a lot of problems alongside John Carew but was also prepared to drop back when we were protecting the lead."

As regards the Moore move to West Brom, O'Neill confirmed: "They have met the asking price. They have agreed the fee.

"I am not asking for a loan fee because I have a chance of getting him back at the end of 28 days. You are not likely to ask someone for a fee if there is a possibility of a recall.

"Part of the deal involves the amount of games that he has to play - and included in that figure are games on loan."

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