It would be silly for Aston Villa to sell defender Kortney Hause to West Ham this summer, says Express & Star journalist Luke Hatfield.

Hause, who was on the bench for Villa in their recent 3-2 defeat to Watford, has been linked with a move to the London Stadium.

According to Football Insider, West Ham have set their sights on the 26-year-old as they look to sign a new centre-back before the transfer window closes.

Hause is not a first-team regular, with Dean Smith once again going with a central defensive partnership of Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa for that loss against Xisco Munoz's men. Nevertheless, Hatfield believes selling the Englishman to the Hammers would be a bad idea.

"I think it'd be silly for Villa to sell someone like Hause," Hatfield told FFC. "They have signed a centre-back in Axel Tuanzebe, but really their only left-sided cover for Tyrone Mings is Hause. He's been a good servant for Villa.

"I'd be very surprised if Villa considered a sale."

It is definitely one to keep an eye on. West Ham have struggled to sign their other centre-back targets, namely Kurt Zouma and Nikola Milenkovic.

Considering that, it probably would not be a surprise to see them make a serious push for someone like Hause.