Aston Villa have set a hefty price tag on Jack Grealish, which could potentially ward off any potential suitors for the player.
It comes after the West Midlands outfit avoided relegation on the final day of the 2019/20 Premier League season, getting a vital draw at West Ham on Sunday evening.
Villa’s only goal of the game came from the much targeted Grealish in the 84th minute, two minutes before Andriy Yarmolenko got an equaliser for the Hammers.
The captain maintained being coy on his future a week ago when asked if the 1-0 win over Arsenal was his last-ever game at Villa Park.
Smith said that he was due to sit down with his skipper to discuss his future amid links that Manchester United want him. Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola is also an admirer of him.
The Villans’ Egyptian co-owner Nassef Sawiris has reportedly placed a hefty £80million price-tag on the star man, that is the same amount that United paid for Harry Maguire from Leicester.
Sawiris is not prepared to him leave on the cheap, even though the 24-year-old himself is considering his future this week.
Asked what he expects from Jack Grealish’s future, Dean Smith said: “I expect him to get drunk with me tonight [Sunday], that’s the only answer I can give you!
“I’ll sit down with the sporting director, CEO and owners tomorrow [Monday], but let us enjoy this great achievement. We were written off by many people and we’ve managed to stay up on the final day.”
? “I expect him to get drunk with me tonight. That’s the only answer I can give you!” ?
Dean Smith tells @TheDesKelly he can’t confirm if Jack Grealish will stay at Aston Villa, but will talk to the club’s owners tomorrow… pic.twitter.com/OEpaHJTkeu
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) July 26, 2020
The duo were pictured together with their arms over each other smiling with relief that Villa managed to stay up.
Smith told talkSPORT on what happened after survival was confirmed: “I’m not great because it was a heavy night!
“I’m not sure what time I got to bed, but I slept in my office back at the training ground. I did an Eddie Jones and slipped off so the lads didn’t see me go!
“I gave (Grealish) a few shots last night and got him to sign a new five-year contract. It’s not been done yet, it was written in Sambuca, I’m not sure if it was mine or his!
“Seriously, that’s a chat for another day. Jack’s a wonderful lad and I’ve got all the time in the world for him and I’m so pleased that he scored the goal that kept us in the Premier League.”
Gaffer ❤️⚽️ pic.twitter.com/JuIadSTLck
— Jack Grealish (@JackGrealish) July 27, 2020
Smith is due to sit down with chief executive Christian Purslow, sporting director Jesus Garcia Pitarch and the club’s billionaire owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens later this week.
Up for discussion will be Villa’s transfer plan ahead of the new season which starts in just 47 days. And Smith said: “I’ll sit down in the next few days with the CEO, sporting director and owners. We need to be smart in the market now.
“I said it after the game yesterday, people had questioned the amount we’d spent (£130 million) but we had such a big turnaround, 13 players, and it worked out something like £9.5 million a player and that’s not a lot of money in the Premier League.
“I’m really proud of the players and how they’ve adapted to the Premier League eventually. We’ve got to where we wanted to be but now we really have to be smart in the market.”
Smith said of the prospect of Grealish leaving in the coming weeks: ‘We have billionaire owners and if people want him he’s going to cost an awful lot of money.’
He is under contract at Villa Park until 2023 on £60,000-a-week, but he could double his wages with a move away.
Tottenham almost signed Grealish last summer before they were priced out of a move.
The attacker is reportedly worried the same will happen this summer, as he wants to play European football as well as get picked for the England squad, with the Euros and World Cup coming up in the next few years.
Fans and pundits have reacted as Aston Villa set the hefty price tag on Jack Grealish…
Agreed Jack isn’t worth 80 mill as a player but he’s worth 80 mill to the club, that’s the difference. You don’t pay what the player is worth, you pay what the player is worth to the club there is a difference.
— Matthew Harvey (@mattharvey464) July 28, 2020
People don’t get it we aren’t saying he’s a 80 million pound player we are saying to us he’s 80 million because he gives us a chance of safety, we don’t need to sell him and he’s our best player.
— jack.avfc (@jackavfc1) July 28, 2020
Seeing the media today claiming Rice is worth every penny of £80million he is a defensive midfielder/CB, Grealish is a creative attacking player can play CAM LW RW you name it scores goals and 2nd only to KDB for chances created, yeah right pay up or go away pic.twitter.com/HVeeqEw3bE
— BigFatRon (@AVFCLIV3) July 28, 2020
Hope Villa keeping up their demand ? I don’t wanna see another overrated English player. 50mil € for Partey or 40mil € for VDB and Here we go!
— Lạc Lê Kiến Quốc (@_brooklyn96_) July 28, 2020
AT ABSOLUTE MOST.. £65m, but even that is pushing it. We can get VDB and James Rodríguez for probably £65m, or even push for Partey at £45m. Many options out there for that kind of money.
— MUFCPoni (@MufcPoni) July 28, 2020
£40-50M, excl. add ons.
— ً (@utdrobbo) July 28, 2020
Leave him. He’s a player that looks better because he’s in a poor team who were fighting relegation. In a better team he’d be average. Fans just follow what the media say. It was Maddison, we should sign at Christmas. Embarrassing
— TraffordTalk (@TalkTrafford) July 28, 2020
None..overrated AF..clueless player..if he that good as so many plastic fans though,his team would be top 10..just doing meaningless dribbling too much,not a good decision maker.should end interest of him asap..
— I_em329 (@I_em329) July 28, 2020
Mcginn on Grealish lol pic.twitter.com/4t6nQKSaX7
— Devesh (@GiveItGiggsehhh) July 28, 2020
United shouldn’t waste much time on grealish if they want him. Offer villa a fair fee and let jack argue it out with them. If they don’t accept it no big deal just move on. He’s hardly somebody we should be working on all summer to sign
— Michael Barton (@mrmichaelbarton) July 28, 2020
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