Grealish to blame as Man Utd, Chelsea and Man City told to pay £150m for Rice

Robin Bairner

• 23 Apr 2022 12:35 BST
• 3 min read

When Jack Grealish completed his transfer from Aston Villa to Manchester City last summer, the Premier League entered a new era of bumper fees.

Of course, we’d seen superstars and hot young prospects move for enormous money but never before had a player hitting his peak years moved from a mid-table outfit for nine-figure fee.

Manchester City, typically not ones to take big risks in the transfer market, often preferring to buy around the £60-70 million bracket, broke their policy by paying Aston Villa €118 million for a player with just a couple of meaningful years in the Premier League behind him.

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The figure was an enormous one to spend on a player with 14 goals and 18 assists in a couple of season’s worth of competition and – so far – is appears that it has been wasted.

Grealish, who was expected to prise open tight defences, has been largely surplus to requirements, with Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden more successful in the attacking midfield areas.

Two goals and two assists in 21 Premier League matches is a poor return for such a lavishly acquired player – even more so when it is considered that his last decisive contribution in the league was before Christmas.

Why Declan Rice's transfer fee is so huge

All of this brings us to Declan Rice, a player that West Ham are happy to play hardball with as Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea ponder a summer move.

Hammers boss David Moyes has been happy to stick a price tag of upwards of £150 million on the England international, having the money Villa were able to claim for their ace last summer.

Rice, too, has more pedigree than Grealish. He was central to England’s run at Euro 2020, has led the Hammers to challenge for the Europa League, and has them making an unlikely push for a top four finish.

He is also younger than Grealish, has a comparable number of Premier League appearances and more international caps. He also has a contract that potentially runs until 2025. Little wonder that West Ham are happy to justify their exorbitant asking price.

Grealish’s move to Manchester City highlighted the gulf between the Premier League’s haves and have-nots, but in Rice’s case, the underdogs are fighting back, pushing England’s top flight into a new era of crazy transfer fees.