West Ham are said to be waiting to ambush Aston Villa's move for Marseille star Morgan Sanson if they do not complete a move for the attacker in the January transfer window.

Villa were linked with the exciting talent over the weekend with boss Andre Villas-Boas admitting clubs were interested in their prized asset.

But according to Telefoot La Chaine journalist Johny Severin, Villa are the only side to have entered negotiations for Sanson.

However, he says West Ham are lying in wait to pinch the 26-year-old if Villa cannot strike a deal this month.

He Tweeted: " @WestHam was interested in @Morgan_Sanson8. But @astonvilla the only club that has entered into negotiations with the #OM. @WestHam in ambush if the transfer fails this winter to make an offer this summer. #MercatOM #TeamOM."

Sanson has 18 months left on his current deal at Marseille and the Sun also claims that Arsenal have targeted Sanson as a replacement for Mesut Ozil following his departure to Fenerbache.

West Ham, it is claimed, would be willing to send Manuel Lanzini in a part exchange deal, but Telefoot claim that Villa have been watching the player for several months.

Speaking about Sanson's future, Villas-Boas said at the weekend: “We’ll see.

"The transfer window is open, Sanson is a player who is highly rated,” Villas-Boas said, fielding questions on Sanson’s future in his post-match press conference. “Officially, we have not received any offers, unless it happened during the match.

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“He is a boy who interests English teams because of his characteristics, and it is possible that something could happen.”

Villa boss Dean Smith is thought to be on the lookout for fresh faces this month after leading the club to the top half of the Premier League table.

He has already been linked with a move for Bournemouth midfielder David Brooks, but it looks unlikely Villa will make a move for him this month.