Jack Grealish to Man City Reaches 'Advanced Stage'

The Aston Villa captain has been linked with a big-money summer move to the Etihad Stadium for several months now, as Manchester City look to take themselves one step further in the Champions League while also defending their Premier League crown.

While some fans have been frustrated at the lack of progress reported in the media since the end of the European Championships, the latest update will certainly offer excitement in regards to Jack Grealish.

The England international does remain away on holiday at present, but talks are certainly ongoing behind the scenes involving various parties including agent Jonathan Barnett and Aston Villa officials.

According to the information of Sam Lee of the Athletic on Tuesday morning, the deal to take Jack Grealish to Manchester City is now 'at an advanced stage'.

The player is understood to be keen on moving upwards at club level, and the prospect of playing Champions League football from next season while also developing his game under Pep Guardiola would certainly be of interest.

However, Aston Villa are expected to put up a fight when it comes to the personal terms that are set to be put on the table by Manchester City officials, and previous reports have stated that the Birmingham club showed an intention to open up fresh contract negotiations prior to the European Championships - in a direct attempt to shut down interest from the Etihad.

Elsewhere, Manchester City are continuing their pursuit of Harry Kane.

However, the feeling is that the club will have to offload one first-team player this summer in order to balance the books sufficiently in the event of signing both Kane and Jack Grealish in the same window.

Both players are expected to command a combined transfer fee of around £220 million, and while the club have already raised in excess of £50 million from the sale of fringe players, the departures of Gabriel Jesus or Bernardo Silva would go a long way from an FFP-perspective.