Aston Villa owner Tony Xia is aiming to keep attacker Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, despite interest from Rangers.
Aston Villa owner Tony Xia has taken to Twitter to suggest that everybody at the club wants teenager Rushian Hepburn-Murphy to sign a new contract and stay at Villa Park.
Villa have let some talented young players leave the club having come up through the ranks in recent years, with Wolves winger Jordan Graham as well as Preston duo Callum Robinson and Daniel Johnson perfect examples.
General view inside Villa Park
It’s imperative that Villa only keep their young talents, but offer them a pathway to the first-team, especially with one player seemingly considering a move away from Villa Park.
Striker Rushian Hepburn-Murphy was born in Birmingham and has come up through the Aston Villa youth academy, hitting the headlines in March 2015 as he made his Premier League debut against Sunderland at the age of just 16.
Now the second-youngest player to feature for Villa, Hepburn-Murphy has been tipped for a bright future, but has played just once this season, and with his contract expiring at the end of the season, rumours suggest that he could leave Villa.
Rangers manager Mark Warburton
The Daily Mail reported last month that Rangers are hoping to sign Hepburn-Murphy on a pre-contract agreement in January, whilst the Daily Record claimed this week that the teenager is ready to quit Villa, paving the way for a move to Ibrox.
Rangers have been attempting to exploit a cross-border contractual loophole over the last year, whereby they can sign players in England for a cut-price compensation fee compared to English clubs – and the Record’s report suggests that the Gers may have to pay just £220,000 for Hepburn-Murphy as a result, in a similar way to how they signed Matt Crooks, Jordan Rossiter, Josh Windass and Joe Dodoo this year.
Aston Villa owner Tony Xia
With those fresh reports that Hepburn-Murphy could be heading to Rangers in 2017, Villa fans have been demanding answers from owner Tony Xia, with supporters unsurprisingly keen to keep one of their own at the club.
Xia responded by admitting that everybody at Villa Park wants Hepburn-Murphy to stay, and hopes that the fans can watch a player with Villa blood in the future, rather than losing him in 2017.
Do you think Hepburn-Murphy will leave Aston Villa in 2017?
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