OPINION
Tottenham Hotspur had looked to be closing in on a deal to sign Aston Villa star Jack Grealish, but the recent takeover of the Birmingham club has thrown a massive spanner in the works for Spurs.
Egyptian Nassef Sawiris and American Wes Edens have purchased a 55% stake in the club, taking over from Dr. Tony Xia, and saving the club from the prospect of administration.
That has in turn meant that Villa are less inclined to allow Grealish to leave on the cheap, something which Tottenham were obviously hoping would happen, and manager Steve Bruce has now confirmed this will be the case.
As quoted by Birmingham Live, Bruce said: “It’s only what somebody else is prepared to pay – what he’s worth. I know for a fact from the owners – new investors – anybody wanting to buy Jack Grealish will not buy him on the cheap. Until I have the conversation I can’t really answer the question. What is he worth? Who knows?”
This is confirmation that Villa will now look for a high price for Grealish, with the club thought to have slapped a £40million price tag on his head this summer, and Tottenham’s hopes of a cheap deal look to be shattered.
However, that does not mean that a good deal is off the table for Tottenham, who can still be clever in trying to work out a favourable deal for both clubs.
Spurs have a wealth of quality youth players for whom they will be seeking loan moves this summer, and the club must now try to introduce one or two of these starlets into the deal.
Joshua Onomah spent a relatively successful year on loan at Villa in 2017/18, with Cameron Carter-Vickers another possible option to include.
If Spurs can make this deal worth it for Villa, who are going through a tough time with financial fair play regulations, then the Championship club will be forced to accept a lower price.
It does look like the potential for a £20million deal is now off the cards, but anywhere around the £25million mark still represents decent value for Tottenham here.
They must now work out a way to make such a deal a reality, and offering up some of their best young talent as part of the agreement looks to be the best way to secure the club’s first signing of the summer.