According to recent reports, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will not look to directly replace the outgoing David Silva this summer, although he is said to be a fan of Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish.
According to reports in The Telegraph, Silva will not be replaced with a ‘big-name arrival’ – as Guardiola has claimed that youngster Phil Foden is capable of making the step up to fill Silva’s shoes – however, the Spaniard ‘will monitor’ the situation of Grealish should his Aston Villa side be relegated from the Premier League this season.
Guardiola’s interest in the 24-year-old is no secret, as, prior to City’s meeting with Aston Villa in the League Cup final earlier this year, the City boss labelled Grealish as ‘one of the best players in the league‘, as well as stating that he is ‘a big fan of him’.
TIF Thoughts…
It is not difficult to see why Guardiola has been impressed with Grealish this season, as the 24-year-old has been one of the bright sparks in an otherwise drab campaign for the Birmingham-based club.
Over his 33 Premier League appearances this season, the Englishman, who is valued at £27.45 million (Transfermarkt), has scored seven goals and provided six assists, averaging a WhoScored match rating of 7.22/10 – ranking him as Villa’s best performer this term, as well as the 23rd-best performer in the whole of the Premier League (min. 18 apps), despite playing for a team who are currently in 19th place in the table.
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As such, if Grealish were to be inserted into a team with the talent of second-placed Manchester City, one would assume that his level of performance would only increase.