Premier League rivals Everton and West Ham are in the hunt for Jack Grealish as financial catastrophe looms large over Aston Villa this summer, according to the Daily Mail.
The newspaper report that the top flight teams have been watching the 22-year-old this season and could now pounce on a swoop with the Villans set for a summer of cutting costs following their failure to secure promotion back to the Premier League.
It is said that Grealish, who has two years left on his contract, is one of their most saleable assets but that Steve Bruce’s side value the attacking maestro in excess of £25million, and that the player himself is a die-hard Villa fan which could impact his potential exit.
The claim states that the midlands club need to cut around £45million to avoid financial fair play punishment, which would be a disastrous turn for the club after two seasons in the Championship.
Good move for Everton?
The Toffees certainly need some added flair in the middle of the park, for the football they played under Sam Allardyce was effective but boring, and lacked the cutting edge to break teams down.
Grealish has proven himself in the second tier, looking a cut above most of the opposition that he comes up against, and it is no surprise that there are Premier League clubs looking his way.
However, that £25million price tag is a ludicrous amount of money, and while the dire straits that Aston Villa find themselves in might justify why they are asking for so much, other clubs should not bow to their demands.
He has the potential to be great but there have been questions of his attitude, and he still needs to do much, much more to warrant that asking price.
A good player, but not a good deal at that sort of money.
This is Futbol rating: 4/10
Likely to happen?
While Grealish and Bruce might not like it, the midfielder’s time at Villa Park is coming to an end.
Whether Everton are the right club for him is to be debated, but it seems unlikely they will throw that much money at him considering their high profile failures last summer.
With Marcel Brands at the helm now, he will have his own list of targets, and if they are coming from Europe their price tags will be significantly lower.
A non-starter for the Toffees.
This is Futbol rating: 2/10