Arteta joins Grealish hunt but will need deep pockets

Arsenal
jack-grealish-aston-villa

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta will be looking to add to his squad in the summer and has joined the list of managers looking to snap up Jack Grealish.

Arteta is set to be backed by the money men at the Gunners as he tries to arrest their slide down the Premier League, which has continued at around the same pace for the past few years and now sees them struggling for a Europa League spot.

They sit in ninth place in the Premier League – a full eight points behind fourth-placed Chelsea in the final Champions League spot.

Arteta, who will be looking to put his own mark on the squad in his first summer of transfer activity as the new full-time head coach, has apparently been given the go ahead to splash the cash in the summer and Grealish is said to be his number one target.

He faces an uphill battle to land the player as his performances for a struggling Villa side have been excellent and he was expected to be in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Euro 2020 this summer, but they are now postponed for 12 months because of the coronavirus.

The Villa skipper has netted seven times in the top flight this season and has six assists to his name, making the 24-year-old one of the most in-demand players in the league.

Villa would like to keep him although that looks likely to be a forlorn hope, especially if they are relegated. If they are forced to sell, they will be looking for the best possible price.

Arteta will have to dig deep because he will be up against Manchester United and arch-rivals Spurs, who have both declared their interest in the player.

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