Aston Villa battling Prem rival, Serie A giant for thriving Sunderland star

Sunderland defender Trai Hume could be on the move during the summer transfer window, with a report claiming Aston Villa, Bournemouth and Napoli are among the five clubs keeping tabs on him.

Hume is a 22-year-old right-back who is versatile and can also operate as a left-back or centre-half if needed. He came through the Linfield academy and went on to play 28 times at senior level for the Northern Irish club before earning a move to England.

In January 2022, Sunderland paid Linfield £150,000 to sign Hume on a four-and-a-half-year contract.

Since then, the six-cap Northern Ireland international has made 77 appearances for Sunderland, with 40 of those coming this season.

Hume is currently enjoying a fantastic season at the Stadium of Light, with WhoScored rating him as Sunderland’s second-best player, behind only Jack Clarke.

Hume has picked up an average rating of 6.99, ahead of other top performers such as Dan Ballard and Jobe Bellingham.

DON’T MISS: Aston Villa told to go all in for La Liga pair; Barcelona can make ‘a lot of money’ from transfer

The full-back is clear at the top in terms of tackles per 90 for Sunderland, averaging 3.4. He also sits in second place for most interceptions per game with 1.5, behind Luke O’Nien.

While the Black Cats are benefitting hugely from having Hume in their side, they might have to operate without him next term.

Aston Villa, Napoli eyeing Trai Hume

As per Belfast Live, clubs are queuing up to sign Hume when the transfer window reopens. Aston Villa are strong contenders, though they will have to fend off several clubs including fellow Premier League side Bournemouth, as well as Championship giants Leeds United and Leicester City.

Further afield, Hume has surprisingly emerged on the radar of Napoli, who won last season’s Serie A title.

Out of those clubs, Hume would obviously be attracted by the possibility of playing for a major European team like Napoli.

But if the player wants to stay a bit closer to home, then a switch to Villa would make sense. The West Midlands outfit are enjoying a brilliant season under Unai Emery, and Hume may want to become a part of that success.

Current Villa right-back Matty Cash has struggled at times this season, so Hume could fancy his chances of picking up regular game time.

Sunderland would be very frustrated to see Hume leave, though they would at least be able to make a big profit on him. After being bought for just £150k, the rising star is now valued at over £4m by transfermarkt. And Sunderland would probably want more than that fee before agreeing to his sale, too.