Aston Villa do not wish Jack Grealish to go but they know he might. So with the help of their smart new sporting director Johan Lange they have planned for this all along.
If Manchester City make good their interest and pay the £100million required then manager Dean Smith will be given the money to spend. The idea is three players and that makes me wonder whether selling the crown jewels would be such a bad idea.
Look at it this way. When Grealish was injured for a chunk of last season, Villa’s performances suffered and Smith admitted they were not coping without him.