Aston Villa Sign Aaron Wan-Bissaka on Loan with Obligation to Buy

Aston Villa have secured the signing of Aaron Wan-Bissaka from West Ham on a season-long loan, with a conditional obligation to buy built into the deal.

The exact trigger for that obligation remains under wraps, but West Ham had been holding out for around £25m from interested clubs. Villa have now stepped in to take the 28-year-old DR Congo right-back back into the Premier League after West Ham’s relegation to the Championship.

This is not the first time Villa have gone down the loan-with-clause route. Last season they took Harvey Elliott from Liverpool on similar terms, with an obligation to buy set at £35m. That move would only have become permanent if the midfielder played 10 league games. He managed just four, the threshold was never reached, and he returned to Anfield this summer.

Wan-Bissaka, meanwhile, sat out West Ham’s first two Championship fixtures while negotiations with Villa were finalised. The defender had joined the Hammers from Manchester United in 2024 on a seven-year contract, a marquee signing intended to anchor their back line for the long term.

He went on to make 65 appearances in claret and blue across two seasons, including 25 league games in the campaign that ended in relegation. Before that, he built his reputation at Old Trafford, playing 190 times for Manchester United and collecting the League Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup in 2024.

On the international stage, Wan-Bissaka has become a key figure for DR Congo. He started all four of their matches at the 2026 World Cup, helping drive an impressive run to the round of 32.

Now he arrives at Villa with top-flight experience, major trophies and a World Cup on his CV — and a deal that could yet turn a short stay into something far more permanent.