Ryan Giggs endorses Manchester United’s interest in Jack Grealish

Red Devils have placed their long term interest in the Aston Villa skipper, Jack Grealish.

In a bid to assemble a squad worthy of challenging Liverpool and Manchester City for the Premier League summit, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Manchester United manager, has identified the playmaking position as one of the priorities to strengthen before the 2020/21 campaign kicks off.

As per Laurie Whitwell, Solskjaer considers Jack Grealish as his prime candidate to embellish the number 10 role – which has seen a massive boost since the arrival of Bruno Fernandes from Sporting CP in January.

Once complimented as “the best player on the pitch”, Solskjaer’s admiration for Grealish is known since his sublime performance in Aston Villa’s 2-2 draw against Manchester United in the Premier League.

Grealish, who played a major role in Aston Villa’s promotion to the Premier League last summer, has been a lone warrior in his club’s fight to retain their top-flight status for the next campaign. The 24-year-old has managed nine goals and eight assists across all competitions.

Furthermore, Gregg Evans’ latest report suggests that Jack Grealish is fully committed to keeping his current club among the top dogs and then move on to greener pastures. The Villa chiefs have been aware of their skipper’s rising stocks and have placed an £80 million price-tag on him.

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Despite the Villians’ hefty demands, Man United have not been deterred yet as they expect the asking price to drop significantly, with the Birmingham club fighting against time to save their PL status. It’s believed that the cost of purchase could plummet to as low as £40m once the Claret and Blue are relegated back to the Championship.

Given the financial clout of the owner, the sale is not an obligation for Villa. However, to comply with Financial Fair Play, having spent well above £150m in the summer, and Grealish’s sky-high ambitions, the Lions might be compelled to let go of the talented playmaker.

Currently, Manchester United are said to be leading the race for the signature of Jack Grealish. Although, several clubs could come into contention once the price falls around the £40m mark.

Recently, Red Devils legend Ryan Giggs boasted Jack Grealish of having the qualities of “a United player” by saying (quotes from Premier League Productions via Evening Standard)

"If a quality player like [Grealish] comes available, United are going to be [interested],He looks like a United player, he takes the ball, he attracts loads of fouls."

Additionally, the former winger also reiterated the need for a prolific goalscorer at United to close the gap between themselves and Premier League’s cream.

"I would say that we definitely need a centre-forward. Someone who, if a team is deep, is going to play deep and be on the end of those passes, crosses and score 25 goals.I still think if we’re going to catch City, we’re three or four players short.But [it’s] definitely exciting and promising with Bruno and Pogba coming into the team."

Donny van de Beek among the fallback options for Man United

Considering Solskjaer’s pressing need to upgrade options at attacking midfield and add competition for Bruno Fernandes, Man United officials have not wasted time in establishing a preliminary dialogue with AFC Ajax and the entourage of Donny van de Beek, as per De Telegraaf.

But, as things stand, the Dutch international is viewed as an alternative should the Old Trafford club fail to land Jack Grealish this summer. The price range for this transfer to go through ranges between £40m-£45m.