Leeds United, Southampton and Rangers face competition in West Ham transfer race | OneFootball

Leeds United and Southampton face competition from La Liga giants Villarreal and Real Betis in their pursuit of West Ham United defender Ben Johnson this month.

The Saints were interested in signing Johnson in the summer, according to Football Insider, and it was reported by journalist Darren Witcoop last month that the club were still keen on the West Ham man.

Since then, The Athletic’s Phil Hay has reported that Leeds are keen on signing the full-back this month. Whilst Football Insider report that the 23-year-old remains a Southampton target too, and could depart the London Stadium on loan ahead of the February 1st transfer deadline.

Fresh reports have outlined that Sheffield United are keen on signing Johnson as they look to fight for their top-flight survival. Elsewhere, Scottish giants Rangers are also keen on snapping up the Hammers defender.

The 23-year-old is closing in on 100 games for West Ham, showing that he's highly rated by the Premier League club. However, he has struggled for game time this season, with competition at full-back coming from the likes of Emerson, Aaron Cresswell, and Vladimir Coufal.

Johnson started West Ham's game against Brighton on the 2nd January and has six first-team appearances so far this season, registering one assist in an EFL Cup tie against Liverpool earlier in the season.

Johnson is due to become a free agent in the summer and has not agreed fresh terms with the club to extend his stay at the London Stadium.​​​​​​, having never played for anyone else in his career so far.

The race for Ben Johnson's signature from West Ham intensifies

According to TEAMtalk, Johnson is being lined up for a move to LaLiga with Real Betis and Villarreal "chasing his signature".

They report that the England U-21 international is free to talk to interested foreign clubs and could sign a pre-contract this month, ahead of a summer move.

The report states: "Real Betis boss Manuel Pellegrini is a big fan of Johnson, having worked with him during his time in charge of West Ham, and is keen on a reunion with the full-back.

"Pellegrini gave Johnson his debut at West Ham back in February 2019 and he has continued to keep tabs on his progress in East London.

"Villarreal are also scouring England for prospective bargain transfers and Johnson fits the profile for the type of signing they are after."

Southampton and Leeds face competition for Ben Johnson's signature

The interest from Leeds in particular makes sense, as Johnson is made even more attractive as a proposition given the fact that he can play on either side of the defence.

Leeds have Junior Firpo at left-back, whilst Sam Byram has played both sides this season, but having another player who can cover both sides of defence makes Johnson a useful asset.

Luke Ayling and Djed Spence departing has left them lighter, but Southampton are also in need of more depth at full-back, evidently.

However, neither have the pulling power of clubs who have predominantly finished in the top half of La Liga in recent years. It may come down to whether Johnson wishes to stay within English football, or take a challenge abroad in the summer instead.