Jack Grealish
Jack Grealish
The links in this summer transfer window involving Aston Villa and academy star Jack Grealish aren't likely to quieten down until the player in question finally does seal a move, as is expected, away from Manchester City - but Villa are by no means the only club in the Premier League who have been credited with an interest.
Grealish, 29, is all set to leave the Etihad Stadium this summer in order to get his playing career back on track and give himself the best chance of making Thomas Tuchel's England squad for next summer's World Cup in the USA. He won't be short of interest from elsewhere, either.
The USA, incidentally, is not somewhere Grealish will find himself this summer having been left at home by Pep Guardiola for City's Club World Cup campaign in the States, which kicks off later this month. Guardiola practically instructed Grealish to find minutes with another club, because they've been far from guaranteed at City and will continue to be so.
Grealish has two years remaining on his contract at City, which earns him a reported £300,000 a week, not exactly loose change for many Premier League sides who, if they were to explore a deal, would likely request a loan arrangement and a subsidising of those wages.
Speculation linking Grealish with a return to Villa is perhaps predictable; the playmaker, the boyhood Villa fan and captain who led the club back to the Premier League and helped them to re-establish themselves amongst the elite under Dean Smith, earned Villa £100m in 2021 and, even then, some supporters outlined their hopes he'd come back one day.
Italian champions Napoli could offer Grealish something different; they're expected to sign his City teammate, the great Kevin De Bruyne, on a free transfer after he brought to an end 10 years in Manchester. Newcastle United, who have Champions League football and intend to strengthen again this summer, have also held a longstanding interest.
Now, the Daily Mail reports, Everton are the latest club to show an interest. The Toffees' owners, the Friedkin Group, view the idea of bringing Grealish in on loan - ahead of the club's first season in their new Bramley-Moore dock home - as a sign of intent as they look to back David Moyes, who ensured they remained in the top flight last season.
Bayern Munich, the German champions, have also been linked with their wingers Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane expected to leave the Allianz Arena this summer. Bayern are, of course, managed by Vincent Kompany, the City legend who left the club a couple of years before Grealish joined.
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