I would sell Pogba (45-50), Lingard (20-25) and Martial (30-35) not to mention getting rid of all their huge wages, just to get Grealish (100). Throw in Tuanzebe on loan to sweeten the deal with Villa. Grealish’s pretty boy look will definitely compensate for his high price tag, maybe not to Beckham’s or Ronaldo’s level, but he will definitely be our new poster boy.
Lingard is not part of OGS plans. Martial experience is over. Pogba cannot play in a double pivot, can only play in a 3 man midfield which OGS will not do with Bruno, is inconsistent, and doesnt want to renew unless we offer him ridiculous wages which he doesnt deserve at all.
We are not looking at a defensive midfield specialist at all, rather the CMs that we are linked with are all around midfielders. OGS clearly wants a double pivot of all around midfielders who can share defensive duties.
Besides, Bruno and Rashford clearly were overused and it was clear their performance significantly dropped as the season went on. Bruno had a disastrous Euro. Both clearly need to be rotated and need real competition to elevate their game even more, and Grealish fits the bill perfectly and suits those two positions a lot more than Pogba.
A fitter Rashford and Bruno will be a lot more beneficial for us, but we have to be able to rotate them without affecting the overall performance of the team.
Imagine going into each game, having at your disposal the choice of Bruno, Rashford, Cavani, Greenwood, Sancho, Grealish and Amad for your front 4.