Newcastle and West Ham are both interested in Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey, with the midfielder open to one move in particular.
The 24-year-old has two years left on his contract at Villa Park, but the Athletic report that the club have made numerous offers of a new deal that have been rebuffed.
Villa are open to cashing in on Ramsey while they can and his transfer value is still high, especially with the club in a precarious situation when it comes to Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
A substantial sale was always likely and even necessary this summer as they work to remain on the right side of the regulations and Ramsey may well be it.
Newcastle and West Ham are not the only interested parties, with Nottingham Forest also keen, but they appear to be leading the race and Ramsey is reportedly keen on the idea of a move to St James’ Park.
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The Magpies tried to sign Ramsey in 2024 but were unsuccessful, so he is well aware of how keen Eddie Howe is on him.
The chance to work with the Newcastle boss and to play in the Champions League are thought to be attractive propositions for the midfielder.
Ramsey was born in Birmingham and came through the youth ranks at Aston Villa, with his only other professional club being Doncaster Rovers on a brief loan spell in 2020.
He has made 167 appearances for his boyhood club in all competitions, scoring 17 goals.
Under Unai Emery he has been used regularly, but has not been a guaranteed starter, making 29 Premier League appearances last season, but just 19 of those coming in the starting XI.
How much Ramsey will cost is not yet clear, with valuations as low as £30m and as high as reported.
Somewhere in between those figures seems likely for a player who only turned 24 in May and has a lot of Premier League experience, while he also made 10 appearances in the Champions League last season.
It has been a quiet transfer window for Aston Villa so far, with just Evann Guessand arriving from Nice in a £26m as a major signing.
Teenagers Yasin Ozcan and Zepiqueno Redmond have also been signed, as has veteran goalkeeper Marco Bizot.
There have not been any significant departures as yet, with Kaine Kesler-Hayden moving to Coventry City for £3.5m the biggest exit.
Villa and Newcastle meet in their Premier League openers this weekend, clashing at Villa Park in the 12.30pm kick-off on Saturday.
