August 05, (THEWILL) – Champions of the English Premier League, Manchester City, have officially announced the signing of Aston Villa’s attacking midfielder Jack Grealish on a six-year deal to bring an end to a summer transfer objective and break the EPL transfer record.
In a message via their official handle on Twitter, @ManCity, the club posted: “We are delighted to announce the signing of Jack Grealish on a six-year deal. Welcome to City, Jack.”
On his part, the 25-year-old Englishman said in a statement about the move: “I am incredibly happy to have joined Manchester City. City are the best team in the country with a manager considered to be the best in the world—it’s a dream come true to be part of this club.”
Breaking the English transfer record, City parted with a reported fee of £100 million to prise Grealish from the grips of his boyhood club where he spent the past eight years, made 213 appearances and found the back of the net 32 times.
Grealish kept faith with Villa even when the club was relegated to the Championship in 2016. He contributed to the team-wide effort that helped it get promoted back to the Premier League after the 2018-19 season.
Villa displayed remarkable football last season with sensational victories that ensured that not only was there no worry about the drop zone back to relegation but Villa finished 11th in the standings of the 2020-21 campaign.
In fact, Aston Villa reached the final of the League Cup in 2020 before losing to Manchester City, where Grealish now heads to for the next adventurous six-years of his professional career.
In bringing the 25-year-old in, City add another gifted creative player, who finished last season with six goals and 10 assists, to their roster. The only players in the Premier League with more assists were Bruno Fernandes, City’s Kevin De Bruyne and Tottenham’s Harry Kane, who is also reportedly angling for a move to Pep Guardiola’s side.
Grealish and his proven creativity will create an even better attack for City, which already won the EPL last season by 12 points and led all teams with 83 goals scored. It can be seen as part of Guardiola’s posturing for another shot at the elusive UEFA Champions League trophy for himself and City.
With a replacement for Sergio Aguero in the mold or a Harry Kane, for instance, and City will almost certainly be favourites for the UCL in the upcoming season.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
