Aston Villa and West Ham issued transfer demand as in-form forward attracts Juventus and Inter interest

Aston Villa and West Ham United will have to see off competition from Italian giants Juventus and Inter if they want to land Iceland international Albert Gudmundsson.

The 26-year-old forward has been a leading light in Serie A this season after scoring ten goals and providing three assists in 20 appearances in all competitions for Genoa during the first half of the campaign.

Gudmundsson's form was rewarded with a new contract in November but speculation over a possible move during the January and summer transfer headlines has continued to dominate the headlines in recent weeks. One Genoa team-mate has already tipped the forward to a big move in the near future after former Ajax midfielder Kevin Strootman compared 35-times capped Iceland international to a current Premier League star.

He told GenovaToday: “If he keeps improving, he won’t stay at Genoa for long. He reminds me of Salah when he was at Roma, in that every now and then he disappears. Much like Salah then, he would have four or five chances per match and only score at most one. They used to say that if Salah was more clinical, he would be playing for Liverpool, and that is exactly what happened. All joking aside, Gudmundsson is a devastating player and also an exemplary professional.”

Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport have now given a major update on where the forward's next move could lie after they revealed Juventus and Inter 'have entered the race' to land Gudmundsson. The report states Juve are 'willing' to submit an official offer at the end of the season - although any offer would have to be in excess of the £26m asking price placed upon his head by Genoa.