Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish has fuelled speculation he is close to joining Manchester City in a record-breaking deal after deleting an old tweet about Manchester United.
City have been pursuing the England star for much of the summer, with Villa insisting their skipper is not for sale and setting a huge £100m price tag to ward off suitors.
But according to The Telegraph, after several days of discussions, Man City have now submitted a bid which meets Villa’s asking price and would make Grealish the most expensive Premier League signing.
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The 25-year-old is still on holiday, but City are now confident an agreement can be reached in a matter of days – and Grealish’s social media activity suggests he may already be preparing for the transfer.
City fans noticed that their potential new signing had posted a tweet about the Red devils several years ago, urging him to delete it before his arrival at the Etihad.
The innocuous tweet from 2012 read: ‘Love listening to Drake while going sleep. Off to sleep for a bit then up for the United game tonight #RedDevils!!’
And, Grealish – or a member of his media team – agreed, deleting the tweet within minutes of news of Man City’s £100m offer.
To add to the concern of Villa supporters, Grealish’s brother Kevan – who has rubbished rumours about him after in the past – deactivated his Twitter account after reports of the £100m bid, with fans fearing the worst.
It is possible that Grealish could reject a move to City, though he wants to play in the Champions League and work under Guardiola – which may prove too alluring despite his love for Villa.
Meanwhile, ESPN claim that City’s deal is actually an offer of £90m plus teenager Morgan Rogers, who spent last campaign on loan at Lincoln City and is valued at £10m.
The Athletic are also reporting that Villa have submitted a £25m bid for Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse, adding further weight to the rumours that Grealish is City bound.
