While an unlikely trio of goalscorers ensured Aston Villa began their Championship campaign with a win at Hull on Monday night, much of the attention was on Jack Grealish. The 22-year-old has been linked with a move away from Villa since they lost the Championship play-off final to Fulham in May, with Tottenham expected to make a last-gasp attempt to sign the young midfielder before the transfer window closes at 5pm on Thursday.

The waiting game has not paid off for Spurs and Daniel Levy, who may have to pay top dollar for Grealish. Tottenham could have exploited Villa’s precarious financial position and bagged themselves a bargain a few weeks ago, when Tony Xia was under pressure to raise funds. However, investment has since arrived from new majority owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens, scuppering Tottenham’s cut-costing plan.

“The owners have made it pretty clear they don’t want to sell him and that still stands,” said Steve Bruce on Monday night after the win at Hull. However, the Villa manager did admit Grealish could go if his valuation is met. “If they get to a magical figure, then we will see. What that magical figure is I do not know. He is young and ambitious and wants to play in the Champions League and we understand that.” The door has been left ajar for Tottenham, who have to work out whether Grealish is worth upwards of £30m.

Grealish would be a squad player at Tottenham but he would prove an astute acquisition for a few reasons. He is a homegrown player, which is important for Tottenham as they currently only have seven homegrown players – one short of the minimum required – so face the prospect of picking a reduced squad for the league, with 24 players rather than the usual 25. Grealish has already been the subject of a tussle for his international services and there were good reasons England put in the effort to make him switch his allegiances from the Republic of Ireland. And if he continues to develop the way he has over the past year, Grealish’s potential value is significantly higher than £30m.

The youngster is a rare breed of footballer in this country, with an uncommon level of agility and close control. He is criticised for going to ground too easily but his balance is one of his strongest assets. There’s a reason he is felled so often. Grealish is very intelligent in the way he manipulates and manoeuvres the ball to draw fouls. That ability can be hugely valuable. A player who can win free-kicks in dangerous positions – which Grealish does multiple times every match – will always give his side opportunities to exploit set pieces.

Grealish wasn’t at his best against Hull on Monday night but he still drew seven fouls, set up a goal with a pinpoint corner and completed 95% of his passes. Last season in the Championship he was the most fouled player per 90 minutes (3.9), he created the most chances from open play per 90 minutes and he completed 3.4 successful dribbles per 90. His modest tallies of three goals and six assists show he is not the finished article, but he is just 22.

One of the main reasons Mauricio Pochettino should be keen to sign Grealish is that he can fill multiple roles in multiple systems. It has been suggested he would just offer back up or competition for Dele Alli but the two players do not have similar playing styles at all. Alli, essentially a support striker, has decent vision, but he’s not a playmaker in the sense that Christian Eriksen, or even Grealish are. Grealish operates from significantly deeper in Bruce’s system and has flourished by driving his side forward with incisive forward passes or dribbles from that position. Alli has been found wanting in a similar role at times and is considerably more wasteful in possession. He is far better when closer to the opposition goal and has a knack of picking up goalscoring positions that Grealish can’t come close to.

Grealish is not a physical powerhouse like Mousa Dembélé, but he has a similar ability to glide past any opponents who don’t haul him to the ground first. His dribble success rate is another indicator that he has a different skillet to Alli. Grealish completed 91 of the 125 dribbles he attempted last season (72.8%), while Alli completed just 44 of 105 (41.9%). Grealish could play deeper in a midfield three alongside two of Tottenham’s physical enforcers; he could play further forward as a No10; or he could play in what he still maintains is his favourite position, cutting in from the left.

Son Heung-Min would be his main competition in that position but Grealish would offer a different threat. In truth, the Spurs player he is most similar to is Eriksen. He would need to bide his time and be patient, but the fact he provides competition for three or four players means – should he move – Grealish could see plenty of minutes in what will be a busy season for Tottenham.

In today’s market, he doesn’t offer much of a financial risk at all and the way he has matured over the past year bodes very well for his development. Under the guidance of a coach who is superb at nurturing young talent, Grealish could become an important player for both club and country.

Resource: https://www.theguardian.com/football...ur-aston-villa