Grealish and Barkley formed a formidable partnership at Villa early in the season
According to surprise transfer news Spanish publication Fichajes (h/t Birmingham Live), Chelsea have entered the race for Aston Villa skipper Jack Grealish and could even be favourites to land him this summer.
Since Villa’s return to the top-flight in 2019, Grealish has been one of the best players on display in the Premier League. Despite being bogged down by injuries towards the end of the 2020/21 season, he finished with an impressive tally of seven goals and twelve assists from 27 matches across all competitions. (h/t Transfermarkt)
Naturally, there has been a lot of speculation surrounding the future of the 25-year-old, with Manchester City and Manchester United holding a long-standing interest in the Aston Villa skipper. However, it is now being claimed that Chelsea, too, have joined in the race for Grealish this summer. (h/t Birmingham Live)
Chelsea’s interest in Grealish does come off as a bit surprising considering the number of players that Thomas Tuchel already has at his disposal who play in similar positions. Indeed, the Blues can call upon Hakim Ziyech, Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic, Kai Havertz while even Timo Werner has also been used as an attacking midfielder in the 3-4-2-1 at times.
However, Ziyech has been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge after what was a rather underwhelming debut season. (h/t Daily Star) This could potentially open up a space for Grealish within the ranks at the Bridge next summer.
However, the claims that Chelsea are the favourites for the signing of the 25-year-old England international seem very outlandish.
For one, Grealish still has over four years left on his contract with Aston Villa, who will fight tooth and nail to keep him at the club. In addition, teams like Manchester City have been pursuing his signing for longer than the Blues. So, the report does come out as a bit bizarre. But stranger things have happened in the transfer market.
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