West Ham reportedly looking for a new goalkeeper so could they try and beat Aston Villa to Manchester United’s Sam Johnstone?
A new report from the Metro stating that West Ham United will not take up the option to make Joe Hart’s move from Manchester City a permanent one could mean bad news for Aston Villa.
It goes on to say that Adrian will also be allowed to leave the London Stadium this summer as the Hammers look for a new goalkeeper to be their number one.
Why will this affect Villa?
One of the names being strongly linked with West Ham recently is Sam Johnstone, whom the Mirror claim is a £4m target for the East Londoners from Manchester United.
Johnstone is currently on loan at Villa Park and as Birmingham Live outlines, manager Steve Bruce has made no secret of the fact that he wants to make the 25-year-old a permanent signing.
Villa are currently fourth in the Championship and are guaranteed a playoff place, but even if they are promoted to the Premier League that does not mean that the ‘keeper would still not favour a move to the Hammers over them.
The one glimmer of hope for Bruce and the Villans is that West Ham are said to be looking at other options, with the Mail on Sunday (April 22, p79) reporting of their interest in Stoke City’s Jack Butland.
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