Jack Grealish has been in fine form for club and country this season, having a hand in 15 goals from 17 games with Aston Villa and two goals in five games with England.
Therefore, it is to be expected that Arsenal and Manchester United (among others) would be paying attention to any prospect of luring him from the Midlands.
The club tied Grealish down to a five-year deal last September, but former Villa Park stalwart Gareth Barry believes his future will be uncertain if the Claret and Blues finish outside of a European place this season. The 25-year-old may also have eyes on starring for England at Euro 2020 in the summer.
Barry said of Grealish on JOE’s All To Play For podcast: “It will be on his mind, if moving will cement his England place. He is captaining his boyhood club and Villa will be under pressure to get into Europe. [European qualification] will affect his decision. Any of the top teams will have him. It will be so hard to fend them all of.”
Grealish has made 203 appearances in all competitions for Villa since rising through the youth ranks to the first team in 2012/13, scoring 31 goals and supplying 40 assists in that time. The 25-year-old stayed at Villa when they were relegated in the summer of 2016 and has provided another five years of service, going on to earn massive praise for his performances in recent months.
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With Grealish having created more chances (58) than any other Premier League player while making the third-most successful dribbles (48) in the division (WhoScored), does he really need to leave Villa?
He’s already a regular for England and has delivered man of the match displays in the national team, so his international hopes won’t suffer if he stays.
Also, Villa are only a few points off the European places, so a continental sojourn at his current club is not out of the question.
