Despite their success since his departure, Aston Villa have never really found a like-for-like replacement for Jack Grealish. His sale was something of a catalyst at Villa Park, helping his boyhood club spend money freely and become a side challenging for European football.
Grealish was sensational in that famous Claret and Blue shirt. In 213 appearances, he scored 32 goals and grabbed 43 assists, playing a huge role in their Premier League survival in his final two seasons.
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In terms of the skillset he has, it feels like the West Midlands club never really managed to find someone in the same mould. However, this summer, that could all change with Villa's latest transfer rumour.
Aston Villa’s latest transfer target
It is never easy to replace a player as influential as Grealish, not only in terms of his ability but also the leadership he provides. With that being said, they have been linked with one Premier League star who could be the player they’re looking for.
According to a recent report from The Athletic, Villa are one of the many top Premier League sides in the race for Southampton attacker Tyler Dibling. The report explains that Unai Emery’s side have ‘watched’ Dibling, ahead of what will be a busy summer transfer window at Villa Park.
It is a summer in which he will seemingly leave the Saints. Football Insider confirmed at the start of the week that Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City are also interested in a move for the attacker, meaning Villa will face competition for his signature.
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As for a price, the same article suggests the South Coast outfit would want £55m for a transfer to happen.
Why Dibling would be a good signing
Last season for Southampton was a disaster. They finished rock bottom of the Premier League, and just about avoided being the worst Premier League side of all time. However, in such a poor campaign, one shining light was Dibling.
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The 19-year-old attacker, who is an England under-21 international, left a real impression in his 33 top-flight appearances. Despite the fact that he only scored two goals and assisted one other, he showcased real skill.
In fact, take a look at one of the two assists he grabbed against Cardiff City in the Carabao Cup last term. The winger showed some excellent ball-carrying skills under pressure to evade the defender, before playing a well-weighted pass to Mateus Fernandes, who fired home.
It is easy to see why Ryan Garry, who coached Dibling at England under-17 level, said he plays with an “X-Factor”. There is a certain swagger about Dibling’s game which is similar, in many ways, to Grealish, suggesting he could be Villa’s replacement for their former number 10.
In fact, former England international Stuart Pierce picked up on the similarities earlier in the season when the Saints played Man United. He described the teenager as a “devotee” of Grealish and compared “his mannerisms and how he carries himself” to the England star.
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This is further personified in this video of Grealish playing for England back in 2020. Look at the way he carries the ball and is able to shield it from the oncoming defender.
Comparing that to the earlier clip of Dibling, the similarities are, once again, clear.
Looking at Grealish’s FBref stats from the 2019/20 Premier League season, an iconic campaign for him in a Villa shirt, they are not too dissimilar to Dibling’s this term. For example, the Saints star averaged 2.16 successful take-ons per 90 minutes, compared to 2.03 each game for Grealish.
Dibling and Grealish key dribbling stats compared
Stat (per 90)
Successful take-ons
Take-on success rate
Progressive carries
Carries into final third
Carries into penalty area
Stats from FBref
Dibling seems like he could be the second coming of Grealish at Villa Park. The similarities are endless, and whilst the 19-year-old hasn’t necessarily had the goal and assist output to live up to Grealish yet, he is clearly a huge talent.
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£55m is roughly half of what they made for Grealish, and being a carbon copy of one of their most iconic players seems a fair way to theoretically spend the money he brought to the club.
Aston Villa's Leon Bailey in action with Celtic's Greg Taylor Related
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