Report: Ross McCormack to earn £70,000-a-week if Aston Villa win promotion

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Aston Villa forward Ross McCormack is set for a hefty pay rise if the Villans seal promotion out of the Championship.

According to a report from the Sunday People (19/5; page 51), Ross McCormack will see his pay increase to £70,000-a-week should Aston Villa manage to seal promotion to the Premier League in the play-off final.

McCormack has had a torrid time since joining Villa in 2016. He has made just 20 Championship appearances in that time, and scored three goals having previously been considered one of the Championship’s most reliable goalscorers following impressive spells with both Fulham and Leeds United.

He has since been on loan with Nottingham Forest, Melbourne City and Central Coast Mariners, before joining Motherwell until the end of the season during the January transfer window.

The 32-year-old managed to make just three substitute appearances for the Scottish Premiership side, so even his biggest fan will struggle to see a way back for him at Villa Park.

But the Sunday People (19/5; page 51) suggests that he is set to benefit should Dean Smith’s men win the play-off final against Derby County later this month, with his wages set to increase to £70,000-a-week for the final year of his contract.

While Villa will remain amongst the bigger clubs in the division even if they manage to get promoted, the figures are remarkable. £70,000-a-week is probably the sort of wage that the Villa board would like to hand to a couple of their marquee players and signings – not a player that will almost definitely not play another minute for the club.

The problem Villa have is that offloading McCormack is not going to be easy either. His form during his loan spells has been underwhelming – apart from an outstanding time with Melbourne City – and surely no club that can afford those kind of wages will be willing to take a chance on McCormack.

It feels as though reaching some kind of agreement that sees the forward become a free agent may be the way forward for both parties. But if Villa do go up, reaching that agreement will become a lot tougher.