Jack Grealish / signs new 5 year contract

Status
Not open for further replies.
jamesjimmybyrondean said:
Grealish has played as a 10 in games and he's been just as good as when he played 8. As for the bolded part, just watch how Pochettino used Eriksen in games.

If we sign a DM we can still play 4-3-3 with Bruno and Grealish ahead of the DM. Or we can play 4-2-2-2 with Bruno and Grealish as right and left attacking midfielders
Click to expand...
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups without McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.

A 4222 with 2 slow #10's in the 2 behind the striker is also pretty shit tbh. Wouldnt work. In a Pochettino system, I could see similar to how Poch used Eriksen and Alli with Grealish and Bruno... but the balance isnt the same as that, and our other 2 are Rashford and Martial, not Kane and Son (Kane being the main difference here).

Whatever way people put it, signing Grealish when we just brought in Bruno Fernandes doesn't really make much sense if we're strictly looking at our starting 11 balance. If we feel hes that good that we can't miss out and "we'll figure it out", then fine. But at the cost of signing a right winger or a proper deep lying playmaking mid would be a bad decision
 
Last edited:
I think its a no brainer. Pogba is going in the summer anyway, so would expect another player there, and he might be the one that allows us to ditch Mata and Lingard. Its a shame really that we kept them this year as its kept Gomes out of the team in that position, and I dont think he could have done much worse
 
bosnian_red said:
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups with McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.

A 4222 with 2 slow #10's in the 2 behind the striker is also pretty shit tbh. Wouldnt work. In a Pochettino system, I could see similar to how Poch used Eriksen and Alli with Grealish and Bruno... but the balance isnt the same as that, and our other 2 are Rashford and Martial, not Kane and Son (Kane being the main difference here).

Whatever way people put it, signing Grealish when we just brought in Bruno Fernandes doesn't really make much sense if we're strictly looking at our starting 11 balance. If we feel hes that good that we can't miss out and "we'll figure it out", then fine. But at the cost of signing a right winger or a proper deep lying playmaking mid would be a bad decision
Click to expand...
The only possibility I can see is:

9 (Striker)
11 Rashford
7 Greenwood
10 Grealish OR 6 Fred
8 Fernandes
6 McTominay
Etc.

A 10, an 8 and a 6 in most games or two 6's and an 8 against teams we'll need to defend a lot against. Maybe move Grealish to the right (7) in those games if we don't sign a quality right winger.
 
Scholsey2004 said:
The only possibility I can see is:

9 (Striker)
11 Rashford
7 Greenwood
10 Grealish OR 6 Fred
8 Fernandes
6 McTominay
Etc.

A 10, an 8 and a 6 in most games or two 6's and an 8 against teams we'll need to defend a lot against. Maybe move Grealish to the right (7) in those games if we don't sign a quality right winger.
Click to expand...
Don't think Mctominay is that great as a holding/defensive CM. He's an all action CM - closer to Kante than Busquets/ Ndidi.
 
bosnian_red said:
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups with McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.

A 4222 with 2 slow #10's in the 2 behind the striker is also pretty shit tbh. Wouldnt work. In a Pochettino system, I could see similar to how Poch used Eriksen and Alli with Grealish and Bruno... but the balance isnt the same as that, and our other 2 are Rashford and Martial, not Kane and Son (Kane being the main difference here).

Whatever way people put it, signing Grealish when we just brought in Bruno Fernandes doesn't really make much sense if we're strictly looking at our starting 11 balance. If we feel hes that good that we can't miss out and "we'll figure it out", then fine. But at the cost of signing a right winger or a proper deep lying playmaking mid would be a bad decision
Click to expand...
Agree with that. Priority has to be to sign a proper CM and a RW over an attacking midfielder. But it depends on how expensive those signings will be. If we're not bagging Sancho or are getting a CM on the cheap, then we could go for Grealish.

I just hope Fernandes is the real deal. The way people are clamouring for Grealish, and I have to admit he looks very talented, gives me the impression (and to be fair I have my skepticism as it is) that Fernandes is not all that. If we've spent 50 million on an attacking midfielder the desire for flair and class in midfield especially going forward should surely subside. But it hasn't.
 
amolbhatia50k said:
Don't think Mctominay is that great as a holding/defensive CM. He's an all action CM - closer to Kante than Busquets/ Ndidi.
Click to expand...
No, I'd agree with you. Obviously if he plays alongside Fred he has that role. If grealish and Fernandes are 10 and 8 respectively though, whichever of Fred or McTominay plays has to hold his position more.
 
Oh and I don't think Mctominay has reached a level where he "must start" in a strong United team. We are weak ATM and hence he has to. However if we have lofty ambitions his current level is that of a rotational player /starter who isn't automatically first choice every game.
 
Scholsey2004 said:
No, I'd agree with you. Obviously if he plays alongside Fred he has that role. If grealish and Fernandes are 10 and 8 respectively though, whichever of Fred or McTominay plays has to hold his position more.
Click to expand...
Sure. But the question is whether they're actually capable of carrying the defensive burden. It's not a big issue of course. Right now I think we need more creativity and fluidity from this football team but just something to note. They are both all action but not sure they have genuinely excellence defence acumen.
 
bosnian_red said:
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups with McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.
Click to expand...

With or without?
 
bosnian_red said:
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups with McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.

A 4222 with 2 slow #10's in the 2 behind the striker is also pretty shit tbh. Wouldnt work. In a Pochettino system, I could see similar to how Poch used Eriksen and Alli with Grealish and Bruno... but the balance isnt the same as that, and our other 2 are Rashford and Martial, not Kane and Son (Kane being the main difference here).

Whatever way people put it, signing Grealish when we just brought in Bruno Fernandes doesn't really make much sense if we're strictly looking at our starting 11 balance. If we feel hes that good that we can't miss out and "we'll figure it out", then fine. But at the cost of signing a right winger or a proper deep lying playmaking mid would be a bad decision
Click to expand...
We may not do it but nothing stops us from doing so. The way I see it we are 100% losing Pogba, that leaves us relying completely on Bruno Fernandes for central creativity and that is walking him right into the same trap that Pogba fell into whereby he is our single source of creativity and can be easily marked out of games because teams will know that if you stop him you stop the whole team. Secondly Matic is now in his thirties and out of all our defensive midfield options he is the one with the passing and defensive capabilities to play the role so the smart money would be on upgrading or replacing him with a more athletic DM. So that's two midfielders that we can sign and if we get a good fee for Pogba we can sign both the DM and Grealish from the Pogba funds. Both Grealish and Fernandes work very hard off the ball so you can play them as two #8s in a 4-3-3 against 15 or so teams in the PL.

If we get two midfielders in the next important position is a #9 to upgrade on Martial and given that we have so much deadwood to sell I think we can fund a move for a youngish striker on the up. Roma reportedly want Smalling whilst Jones and Rojo should be sold so we can get 30m from that and use whatever was left over from the Fernandes outlay in the summer budget.
 
Grealish is surely more attainable/cheaper than Maddison, especially if Villa get relegated. Don't at all see the logic of signing both.

Given that Grealish and Bruno both have high work rates, I think playing them.as two free 8's ahead of McTomminay or Fred really could work.
 
amolbhatia50k said:
Oh and I don't think Mctominay has reached a level where he "must start" in a strong United team. We are weak ATM and hence he has to. However if we have lofty ambitions his current level is that of a rotational player /starter who isn't automatically first choice every game.
Click to expand...

Yeah I agree. Mctominay has done well in a team struggling to break top 4. He's by no means nailed on yet.
 
Mr Smith said:
Grealish is surely more attainable/cheaper than Maddison, especially if Villa get relegated. Don't at all see the logic of signing both.

Given that Grealish and Bruno both have high work rates, I think playing them.as two free 8's ahead of McTomminay or Fred really could work.
Click to expand...
Rotate with two out Maddison, Grealish and Bruno will play with a CDM behind them to clean up, the CDM should be more physical like McTomminay.
 
Mr Smith said:
Grealish is surely more attainable/cheaper than Maddison, especially if Villa get relegated. Don't at all see the logic of signing both.

Given that Grealish and Bruno both have high work rates, I think playing them.as two free 8's ahead of McTomminay or Fred really could work.
Click to expand...

0 chance of signing both.
 
Grealish is attainable, Maddison isn't unless we stump up 100m+

I'd be happy with either, but I like Grealish's attitude and leadership qualities.
 
I think Grealish's all-round game and drive would make him the better signing, I'm not convinced Maddison wouldn't just be playing the same role we have just signed Fernandes for. Don't get me wrong, he's an outstanding player but I think Grealish would give us something truly different in the middle.
 
Sandikan said:
Can see it now.
Villa ask 70m, we all laugh at such a nonsense fee.
Then it breaks at once, that we're "close" to an agreement.
Then it goes quiet for aggeeesss.
Then the stories of how we want to pay 50m, but Villa are holding out for 70m.
Then the talk of how we want to pay 50m, plus 10m on appearances.
Then just when everyone's given up hope, we sign him for 63m with 8m on appearances late on.
Click to expand...

Matt. Is that you?
 
No way we sign both, it would be Grealish who would be cheaper compared to Maddison and Leicester in much better position to qualify for CL.
 
amolbhatia50k said:
Agree with that. Priority has to be to sign a proper CM and a RW over an attacking midfielder. But it depends on how expensive those signings will be. If we're not bagging Sancho or are getting a CM on the cheap, then we could go for Grealish.

I just hope Fernandes is the real deal. The way people are clamouring for Grealish, and I have to admit he looks very talented, gives me the impression (and to be fair I have my skepticism as it is) that Fernandes is not all that. If we've spent 50 million on an attacking midfielder the desire for flair and class in midfield especially going forward should surely subside. But it hasn't.
Click to expand...
I'd be shocked if Grealish is a better player than Bruno Fernandes. Most people here haven't seen much of him, while those that have rave about him, while having the stats that back it up. Grealish is good but I dont personally think hes an unmissable talent or anything. Think hes a level below what Bruno can be or has shown to be (while both play the same position - so it doesn't make sense buying Grealish when both are #10's).
 
bosnian_red said:
Do you truly think our midfield will have 3 completely new players in it bought in 2020? Not a chance. No idea why anyone makes potential lineups with McTominay in it. The guy was excellent this season before injury and is a long term starter, no matter the manager. I dont see anyone dropping him as long as he keeps up as he has.

A 4222 with 2 slow #10's in the 2 behind the striker is also pretty shit tbh. Wouldnt work. In a Pochettino system, I could see similar to how Poch used Eriksen and Alli with Grealish and Bruno... but the balance isnt the same as that, and our other 2 are Rashford and Martial, not Kane and Son (Kane being the main difference here).

Whatever way people put it, signing Grealish when we just brought in Bruno Fernandes doesn't really make much sense if we're strictly looking at our starting 11 balance. If we feel hes that good that we can't miss out and "we'll figure it out", then fine. But at the cost of signing a right winger or a proper deep lying playmaking mid would be a bad decision
Click to expand...
I really think we need a top CDM in the first place. McTominay is a solid player but in my books Fred is the better footballer when used in the right way. That is as someone taking the ball from the back 6 and break down opponents in the transition area. He needs a deep lying and defensively strong playmaker behind him with good positional awareness and a creative midfielder ahead/beside him. With Bruno having just come in that one should be sorted.
Grealish would take the role of Fred I guess but I am not sure that would give us the same balance.
If anyone at the club really has plans to go for Grealish AND Maddison this would show how clueless we are.
 
AneRu said:
We may not do it but nothing stops us from doing so. The way I see it we are 100% losing Pogba, that leaves us relying completely on Bruno Fernandes for central creativity and that is walking him right into the same trap that Pogba fell into whereby he is our single source of creativity and can be easily marked out of games because teams will know that if you stop him you stop the whole team. Secondly Matic is now in his thirties and out of all our defensive midfield options he is the one with the passing and defensive capabilities to play the role so the smart money would be on upgrading or replacing him with a more athletic DM. So that's two midfielders that we can sign and if we get a good fee for Pogba we can sign both the DM and Grealish from the Pogba funds. Both Grealish and Fernandes work very hard off the ball so you can play them as two #8s in a 4-3-3 against 15 or so teams in the PL.

If we get two midfielders in the next important position is a #9 to upgrade on Martial and given that we have so much deadwood to sell I think we can fund a move for a youngish striker on the up. Roma reportedly want Smalling whilst Jones and Rojo should be sold so we can get 30m from that and use whatever was left over from the Fernandes outlay in the summer budget.
Click to expand...
Yes but looking at Bruno and McTominay, the midfielder the suits it perfectly is a deep lying playmaker like Carrick (or Jorginho at Chelsea). Someone to orchestrate and provide creativity from deep. Gives balance in all senses. Making McTominay the holding mid behind 2 #10's would be a disaster.
 
bosnian_red said:
Yes but looking at Bruno and McTominay, the midfielder the suits it perfectly is a deep lying playmaker like Carrick (or Jorginho at Chelsea). Someone to orchestrate and provide creativity from deep. Gives balance in all senses. Making McTominay the holding mid behind 2 #10's would be a disaster.
Click to expand...
I think you are wrongly classifying Bruno as a #10 in the strictest sense, yes he has good offensive figures but to me he an advanced #8 who should be able to do a job in a midfield three, the key is in getting a defensively strong deep lying playmaker and we won't be lining up this way going away to Anfield either those are the games where you shunt one of them out wide and bring in Fred/McTominay. Against the bottom 14 in the league that midfield should be enough to win games.
 
bosnian_red said:
Yes but looking at Bruno and McTominay, the midfielder the suits it perfectly is a deep lying playmaker like Carrick (or Jorginho at Chelsea). Someone to orchestrate and provide creativity from deep. Gives balance in all senses. Making McTominay the holding mid behind 2 #10's would be a disaster.
Click to expand...

I have read today that Bruno is not a #10 according to his old coach, Grealish can play #8 so in games we can actually have McT and them two.
 
Madison makes zero sense now and even Woodward can't be that stupid.

Apart from obvious quality, getting Grealish would also add quality back up /competition for rashford. Not exactly sure how Bruno and Grealish would play together but it can be one of three ways, I reckon.

Either Grealish plays as an attacking midfielder in a double pivot alongside Mctominay or another DM. Else we can either play a 4-2-2-2. With both Grealish and bruno ahead of fred and Mctominay (without a RW) or in a 4-3-3 with a single DM and bruno and Grealish supporting a front three (which will need a brilliant DM and defensive full backs)
 
zenith said:
Madison makes zero sense now and even Woodward can't be that stupid.

Apart from obvious quality, getting Grealish would also add quality back up /competition for rashford. Not exactly sure how Bruno and Grealish would play together but it can be one of three ways, I reckon.

Either Grealish plays as an attacking midfielder in a double pivot alongside Mctominay or another DM. Else we can either play a 4-2-2-2. With both Grealish and bruno ahead of fred and Mctominay (without a RW) or in a 4-3-3 with a single DM and bruno and Grealish supporting a front three (which will need a brilliant DM and defensive full backs)
Click to expand...

I agree, Maddison has been our primary target for a while but we saw from Leicester last season, they are not going to be easy to negotiate. Not saying Villa will, I feel they need the money more than Leicester do.

Grealish will probably about £20-30m cheaper, prob less wages as well so seems like a better deal in all honesty.

Football wise, he was a huge talent from a young age, he is quite physical as well compared to Maddison who is more of a #10.
 
If we are planning to sell Pogba, then this guy must be the replacement! Maddison is quality but Leicester want 100M. Rip off. Grealish I think is doable, probably for a similar price to Bruno Fernandes, hopefully a bit less. Hes a better fit for us as well, hes got a bit more grit about him, plus hes a captain! We need all of the leadership we can get and this guy could potentially be the guy that drags a struggling Aston Villa side over the line and keeps them in the division.
 
No chance of both GREALISH and MADDISON.
I think Maddison is the better option personally.

Only IF we sell Pogba, Martial and get rid of Lingard and Mata then we can bring in Sancho, Maddison and Grealish.
We still need another imposing centre back too.
 
To me, Bruno looks far closer to Maddison than he does Grealish. I think Bruno and Grealish could compliment each other nicely in midfield. He can also play to a very high level at LW and CAM which would help us when Rashford needs a rest and if we'd like to continue with 4231.

Far too obvious a signing for us to make in years gone by but he seems to fit the mould of players we have been going after since Ole came in. I'm hopeful we'll get him in.
 
bosnian_red said:
I'd be shocked if Grealish is a better player than Bruno Fernandes. Most people here haven't seen much of him, while those that have rave about him, while having the stats that back it up. Grealish is good but I dont personally think hes an unmissable talent or anything. Think hes a level below what Bruno can be or has shown to believe (while both play the same position - so it doesn't make sense buying Grealish when both are #10's).
Click to expand...
I'll be honest Bruno doesn't do great as per the basic eye test so I do hope he's as good as some think he is
 
I'm not too sure that we have seen the end of Rashford as a striker from Ole's standpoint. He may simply be playing on the left at the moment because we feel that he is the only player we have that can be creative from the flanks. If Ole wants have our creative sources come from the flanks, playing rashford centrally and signing both Grealish and Sancho with bruno as our attacking midfielder would give us a lot of creativity and depth behind the striker.
 
Paying 100 million for an attacking midfielder with as many assists as Periera this year and 1 goal from open play. I can’t say that I watch him play, but he’d be slaughtered on here for those numbers. I’d 100% take Grealish over Maddison.

Pogba has 1 less assist and has been out for 5 months. And potentially cost us less.
 
Imagine bringing Grealish AND Maddison in. Having just brought Bruno in.

It'd be like some insane fantasy footy approach.
Or at least shifting our obsession on one position, following on from left wing a few years back.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.