“Absolutely if the money was right, Of course, it’s his boyhood club, The big question mark is, is it the same when you do come back?”- pundit Alan Hutton says Aston Villa would be interested in re-signing Jack Grealish for a fair price as Pep Guardiola bust-up intensifies speculation on player’s future

Aston Villa would “absolutely” be keen to bring Jack Grealish back to Villa Park during the summer transfer window, according to Alan Hutton

The England international left his boyhood club in the summer of 2021 to join Manchester City in a reported £100million transfer [Sky Sports, 6 August 2021], but has been in and out of Pep Guardiola’s side and struggled for form so far this season.

Following the Premier League champion’s goalless draw with Arsenal on Sunday (31 March) the 28-year-old received a public dressing down from Guardiola on the pitch and live on Sky Sports having failed to impact proceedings from the bench.

While Hutton believes Grealish would be open to returning to Villa Park in the future, he expects the Englishman to fight for his place at the Etihad Stadium and remain a Manchester City player throughout the summer transfer window.

“Absolutely if the money was right,” Hutton told Villa News.

“You need to remember Manchester City paid £100million for him so they’re going to want a large chunk of that back. Would he come back? Of course, it’s his boyhood club. The big question mark is, is it the same when you do come back?

“I don’t know, that will be something for him to decide. I’m sure he wants to stay at Manchester City, he wants to prove to everybody that he’s more than capable like he did last season. I think at times he’s had competition coming in, he’s had injuries.

“It’s not been the best of seasons for him personally, but he still has a lot to give and I believe he can fit into that team. When you talk about that dressing-down situation, I don’t really like it.

“I understand he’s one of the best coaches in the world and if he’s got something to say he will. If it was me personally, I’d rather have it inside but that’s just my view on it. But I think Jack will want to stay where he is and fight for his place.”

While most Villa supporters would be delighted to see Grealish back in claret and blue this summer, it feels unlikely that both clubs and the 28-year-old would be able to agree on terms to get the deal over the line.

Unai Emery is expected to add to his Aston Villa squad in the transfer window.

The Villans have financial fair play concerns at this moment in time and may need to sell to buy players this summer, therefore it seems unlikely Emery’s transfer budget will be able to stretch to afford Grealish’s fee and wages.

Maybe, there could be a few more twists and turns before the transfer window opens at the end of the season, but at the moment, this doesn’t seem like a deal that is likely to happen.