'Very torn' - Aston Villa fans pile in as shock West Ham transfer claims emerge

Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn is reportedly a transfer target for West Ham United.

It has been claimed that Hammers boss David Moyes is a fan of his compatriot McGinn with the Scottish international heavily linked with a move away from Villa this summer. Liverpool and Manchester United have both been credited with an interest in McGinn in the past while Tottenham Hotspur have also been tipped to sign the 27 year-old.

McGinn has been the subject of intense transfer speculation since he helped Villa to promotion in 2019, scoring in a Championship play-off final defeat of Derby County almost three years ago to the day. The former St Mirren and Hibernian midfielder is under contract at Villa until the end of the 2024-25 season having signed a fresh extension in December 2020.

McGinn played 35 times for Villa in 2021-22 and was used as a defensive midfielder at times because of injury to Marvelous Nakamba. Even so McGinn bagged three times and set up four goals for his team-mates and Villa boss Steven Gerrard is a big fan of him.

"There are not many better people than John," Gerrard said. "I've been in the game an awfully long time and he is a really infectious character who is great for the group, on and off the pitch.

"John is the glue to everything that's good at Villa. "One hundred percent, he is very important for me, for the staff, for his team-mates and the club.

"The club has been good for John - and he has paid them back with consistent performances throughout. "We are hoping to keep trying to improve him in all departments."

Villa fans have been reacting to the claims and have had their say on social media, with one fan writing about the McGinn talk: "This will be very tempting if an offer comes in."