Aston Villa Are Facing Stiff Competition For This EFL Championship Ace: Is He Worth The Fight? | OneFootball

In a recent report, The Belfast Telegraph revealed that Aston Villa are facing stiff competition for Sunderland ace Trai Hume. It has been stated that the Villans would have to rival Bournemouth, Leeds United, Leicester City and Napoli in the race to land the Northern Ireland full-back.

Hume’s Impressive Form In The EFL Championship

Hume has enjoyed a decent campaign at Sunderland as he has put in a run of solid displays on the right side of their backline. The 22-year-old has scored one goal and grabbed one assist in 40 matches for the English outfit this season across all competitions.

The Northern Irish talent has performed his defensive duties well and deserves credit for averaging 3.4 tackles, 1.5 interceptions and 1.8 clearances per 90 minutes in the English Championship. He has even been accurate when distributing possession from the back after completing 83.3% of his attempted passes in the second tier of English football (stats via whoscored).

His current contract at Sunderland will run out in the summer of 2027 which could make it tough for the Villans to get a deal done for him later this year.

BELFAST, IRELAND – OCTOBER 17: Trai Hume of Northern Ireland runs with the ball whilst under pressure from Erik Janza of Slovenia during the UEFA EURO 2024 European qualifier match between Northern Ireland and Slovenia at Windsor Park on October 17, 2023 in Belfast, Ireland. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

Aston Villa Are Facing Stiff Competition For Hume: Is He Worth The Fight?

Hume is a tough-tackling full-back who can time his challenges well to earn the ball back for his team inside his half. He doesn’t mind clearing the danger when needed and is a tidy passer of the ball as well.

The Northern Irish talent is primarily a right-back but can also fill in as a central defender or as a left-back if asked to do so by his manager. However, he is still quite inexperienced at the highest level and would need time to settle into life in the Premier League if the Villans manage to snap him up this summer.

Hume would bring more quality and depth to Aston Villa boss Unai Emery’s defence. He is good enough to fight for a regular starting spot at Villa Park in the coming seasons. At 22, Hume has got a bright future ahead of him, so he will be well worth the fight as the Villans look to improve their squad this summer.