ASTON VILLA boss Dean Smith has told Manchester United to forget about signing club captain Jack Grealish.
The 24-year-old had been rumoured to have been a target for the Red Devils after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer heaped praise on the midfielder.
Jack Grealish has impressed for Aston Villa on his return to the Premier LeagueCredit: Getty – Contributor
Grealish impressed the Norwegian at Old Trafford on Sunday, curling home a pearler in Villa’s 2-2 draw with United.
The England star was told by Soskjaer after the match that he was the best player on the pitch, but Smith claimed the private discussion hasn’t left him worried about the future of his talisman.
He said: “I’d say it if I saw opposition player running game! And for 30 minutes he was.”
“I’ve seen speculation in the press with pundits linking him with other clubs, what they don’t realise, I’ve worked with this kid for 14 months, he tells the story himself of jumping into a bush in the garden at six years old pretending it was the Holte End.
He’s Villa through and through, he’s now performing on the biggest stage he can in the Premier League for Aston Villa.
Dean Smith on Jack Grealish
“He’s Villa through and through, he’s now performing on the biggest stage he can in the Premier League for Aston Villa. He’s playing well, scoring goals, creating assists and it’s a club he loves.
“He signed a new deal at the start of last season, we’ve got two very wealthy owners who want to build the team around Jack.
“They can keep linking him, but this is the one club he loves and that’s probably the most important thing.”
Grealish was Villa’s standout player last season as he played a pivotal role in helping his boyhood club return to the Premier League.
Before that, he was the subject of a summer-long pursuit from Spurs but the playmaker put pen to paper on a five-year contract last year.
Smith added: “Wolves got promoted last year, I didn’t see (Ruben) Neves getting linked with Manchester United … this isn’t a small club here at Aston Villa.
“As I’ve said, we’ve got two billionaire owners who bought the club for a reason, wanted this club to get into Premier League.
“We are in the Premier league and now we want to carry it forward. I’m sure they wouldn’t be thinking of one of our top players being linked with other clubs.”
Man Utd boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says the next two games give his team the chance to prove themselves
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
