Although transfer window valuations of players went through the roof once Paris Saint-Germain paid €222m for Neymar from Barcelona, the coronavirus pandemic has seen market values plummet.
Despite this, Aston Villa are still expected to hold out for close to £70m should their star player, Jack Grealish, decide to leave for pastures new.
In the current market, that would still be seen as approaching the upper end of the scale in financial terms, but former Villa manager, now TV pundit, Tim Sherwood, believes that the Villains captain is worth at least £100m more.
“He’s taken some unfair criticism in recent years,” Sherwood told Premier League Productions and cited by the Daily Express.
“Anyone who tells me Jack Grealish isn’t a top-drawer footballer knows nothing about the game.
“I worked with him every single day, I know what the guy possesses.
“I’ll tell you a club not too far away from them tonight – Arsenal – who could have done with Jack Grealish tonight.
“He’s not boring, he’s dropped the shoulder, takes it to the opposition, he sees the pass, he creates a melle and releases the ball.
“I didn’t see any Arsenal players doing that.
“Arsenal paid £70million for Nicolas Pepe, if he’s worth £70million, then Jack Grealish is £170million. He makes things happen.”
It’s a bold claim from Sherwood, though there’s little doubt as to Grealish’s credentials.
The marauding midfielder has added a maturity to his game which under normal circumstances may have added a few more million to his sale price.
Even if Villa were to stay up, which now appears likely after their dogged 1-0 win over Arsenal on Tuesday night, there is the sense that Grealish has served his apprenticeship and deserves the chance to move on to bigger and better things.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could be waiting in the wings and watching the situation develop with interest, and if Man United are able to secure his services, the 24-year-old will surely only enhance what the Norwegian already has in situ.