Sancho, Grealish, Rice or Calvert-Lewin?

[Josep Dowling]

I’m sure most are going to say Grealish without any consideration to where he fits into our current set up. If he starts he would replace either Bruno or Rashford so it’s a stupid buy.

Calvert Lewin doesn’t suit for quick counter attacking football either. Do you want to pay £80m for a bench option?

Sancho is the clear winner. RW. As quick as our other front 3 players, would fit straight into our best 11 without changing systems.

 

[zenith]

Grealish would be a silly buy, because like others have mentioned he would either replace bruno or rashford and that would simply not make sense.

Sancho is also an option but i reckon with the amount we have invested on youth in that position that we will give this a pass for now. Not to mention it'll further deprive greenwood of minutes.

DCL also seems like a waste, as we are well stocked on that position for now and can even look at haaland in a couple of years.

Rice for me is the one that makes prefect sense, with pogba expected to leave and matic getting slower than an oil tanker, we will need need rice and caicedo to add depth to our midfield and maintain the same number of options.

 

[Mcking]

Rice or Grealish. We desperately need a proper DM, and Rice is one.

Rashford has looked good the few times he has played on the right this season, so that paves the way for Grealish to play on the left.

If I have to choose one though, it would be Grealish. He is quality and would help us retain the ball better. A front four of Grealish, Fernandes, Rashford and Martial could be unplayable.

Not too fussed about DCL, and always had my doubts about Sancho.

 

[Nickosaur]

Rice and Grealish would be perfect. Diallo will boss the right wing so we don't need Sancho

 

[Bwuk]

Grealish.

I don’t see us going back in for Sancho after spending so much on Diallo and Pellistri.

 

[AneRu]

Grealish but then it would create a tactical conundrum with Rashford and Bruno. Will Rashford thrive if he makes a permanent move to the right? But given what Grealish brings in terms of drive, ball retention and creativity I would take the risk.

 

[georgipep]

I’m sure most are going to say Grealish without any consideration to where he fits into our current set up. If he starts he would replace either Bruno or Rashford so it’s a stupid buy.

Calvert Lewin doesn’t suit for quick counter attacking football either. Do you want to pay £80m for a bench option?

Sancho is the clear winner. RW. As quick as our other front 3 players, would fit straight into our best 11 without changing systems.

I'm not saying we should go a buy DCL but he is very well suited for quick counter-attacking football. He has been instrumental in such style for Everton in the last two years. Have you even watched them?

 

[theklr]

Sancho or Grealish, and Sancho is the far better option just because of our lack of RW and Rashford back up.

Calvert Lewin and Rice isnt good enough for me.

 

[HowYouDoin]

All those ships have sailed.

Caicedo, Bruno, Greenwood, Diallo.

Caicedo and Diallo obviously unknowns at this point but I would rather have Bruno and Greenwood over Grealish and DCL, yes I do have a lot of faith in Greenwood.

 

[dal]

I don’t get why people are worrying about rashford and Bruno moving about the pitch if we sign Grealish.

If Grealish is available you sign him, he’s that good and he replaces Pogba in our squad but he better than him.

Grealish can play LW, RW, CAM and even in a double pivot and I’m sure he can play false 9 too.

We would have the best forward line in Europe if we signed him.

In reality we could sign Rice, Grealish and DCL, would mean letting Pogba and Martial go though but I’d be happy with that.

Grealish, DCL, Rashford, Bruno, Greenwood, Cavani, Diallo, VDB. Forwards

Fred, Mctominay, Matic, Rice. Midfielders.

I’d be happy with that and it would be a net spend of around £80 million which is fine.

We could even let VDB go whom I feel is a nothing player.

 

[charlenefan]

Sancho
Grealish
Rice
DCL

In that order

 

[Josep Dowling]

I don’t get why people are worrying about rashford and Bruno moving about the pitch if we sign Grealish.

If Grealish is available you sign him, he’s that good and he replaces Pogba in our squad but he better than him.

Grealish can play LW, RW, CAM and even in a double pivot and I’m sure he can play false 9 too.

We would have the best forward line in Europe if we signed him.

In reality we could sign Rice, Grealish and DCL, would mean letting Pogba and Martial go though but I’d be happy with that.

Grealish, DCL, Rashford, Bruno, Greenwood, Cavani, Diallo, VDB. Forwards

Fred, Mctominay, Matic, Rice. Midfielders.

I’d be happy with that and it would be a net spend of around £80 million which is fine.

We could even let VDB go whom I feel is a nothing player.

Grealish isn’t that good at all. He’s merely flavour of the month. Anyone would think he’s scoring and assisting double figures. Also his off the pitch antics have to be taken into account as well. Why spend £80m on a player in a position that isn’t priority? That’s precisely why our squad has so many gaps in it already.

 

[HowYouDoin]

I don’t get why people are worrying about rashford and Bruno moving about the pitch if we sign Grealish.

If Grealish is available you sign him, he’s that good and he replaces Pogba in our squad but he better than him.

Grealish can play LW, RW, CAM and even in a double pivot and I’m sure he can play false 9 too.

We would have the best forward line in Europe if we signed him.

In reality we could sign Rice, Grealish and DCL, would mean letting Pogba and Martial go though but I’d be happy with that.

Grealish, DCL, Rashford, Bruno, Greenwood, Cavani, Diallo, VDB. Forwards

Fred, Mctominay, Matic, Rice. Midfielders.

I’d be happy with that and it would be a net spend of around £80 million which is fine.

Meh I dont know.
On one hand Grealish is amazing and he could perhaps play RW or perhaps Rashford could, perhaps we could find a way to work it out. Play 4-3-3, somehow it could work perhaps.

But then again we could have the same problem that Barca have with Messi, Griezmann and Coutinho. 3 players that just play too similarly and get in each others way.

With that being said, its really tempting to go after Grealish.

 

[Josep Dowling]

I'm not saying we should go a buy DCL but he is very well suited for quick counter-attacking football. He has been instrumental in such style for Everton in the last two years. Have you even watched them?

Have you actually watched Everton? Go and watch his goals scored this season, not a single one is from a counter attack. Calvert Lewin is a target man. Most of his goals have come from long balls over the top and crosses.

 

[dal]

Grealish isn’t that good at all. He’s merely flavour of the month. Anyone would think he’s scoring and assisting double figures. Also his off the pitch antics have to be taken into account as well. Why spend £80m on a player in a position that isn’t priority? That’s precisely why our squad has so many gaps in it already.

He is that good, I’v been following him for 5 years have numerous friends who are villa fans. I do take your points though.

We need another creative forward and if it’s not Grealish then maybe someone like him (Maddison?) but Grealish would still be my favourite.

 

[Bobade]

I don’t get why people are worrying about rashford and Bruno moving about the pitch if we sign Grealish.

If Grealish is available you sign him, he’s that good and he replaces Pogba in our squad but he better than him.

Grealish can play LW, RW, CAM and even in a double pivot and I’m sure he can play false 9 too.

We would have the best forward line in Europe if we signed him.

In reality we could sign Rice, Grealish and DCL, would mean letting Pogba and Martial go though but I’d be happy with that.

Grealish, DCL, Rashford, Bruno, Greenwood, Cavani, Diallo, VDB. Forwards

Fred, Mctominay, Matic, Rice. Midfielders.

I’d be happy with that and it would be a net spend of around £80 million which is fine.

We could even let VDB go whom I feel is a nothing player.

You say he replaces Pogba in our squad then list a number of positions that Pogba either doesnt play in, or rarely plays in?

Grealish is good, as are all these players. I'd be happy to have any of them but for nowhere near the prices that would be quoted. Especially Rice.

 

[Josep Dowling]

He is that good, I’v been following him for 5 years have numerous friends who are villa fans. I do take your points though.

We need another creative forward and if it’s not Grealish then maybe someone like him (Maddison?) but Grealish would still be my favourite.

I think we need an AM only if Pogba is sold. Pogba is more than capable of playing Bruno’s role, which he excelled in during Ole first few months as manager. I’m surprised Ole has never used Pogba in that position since. He was scoring and assisting most games which eventually got him into the team of the season. It’s evident Pogba is terrible in a midfield 2 though.

 

[dal]

You say he replaces Pogba in our squad then list a number of positions that Pogba either doesnt play in, or rarely plays in?

Grealish is good, as are all these players. I'd be happy to have any of them but for nowhere near the prices that would be quoted. Especially Rice.

That’s exactly my point. Pogba is the attacking/creative player in our squad who isn’t very good at attacking, he’s a square peg that needs to be replace

Grealish can play all attacking roles brilliantly, he can play as an 8 (double pivot) too if we are chasing games.

He provides us with a whole host of attacking options.

 

[georgipep]

Have you actually watched Everton? Go and watch his goals scored this season, not a single one is from a counter attack. Calvert Lewin is a target man. Most of his goals have come from long balls over the top and crosses.

I do watch them quite often and I disagree. In the league this season they've played 14 games. On average they've had 49% possession and have had less of the ball in 9/14 of those games. They only dominated possession against WBA, Palace, Newcastle, Burnley and Manchester United. (you can find all that info on fbref.com)

They are also poor at defending against counter-attacks and that's why they set up with mid-low defensive block and try themselves to hit teams on the break. (their playing style info is from whoscored.com)

If I were asked to explain a typical Everton attack, I would say it is a pass from defence to Sigurdsson who then plays a through ball to Richarlison or Iwobi, then a cross to DCL and a header or shot within the keeper's box.

 

[Schmeichel's Cartwheel]

Grealish is the best footballer right now

Sancho has the highest potential

Rice & DCL are just good PL players.

 

[Schmeichel's Cartwheel]

That’s exactly my point. Pogba is the attacking/creative player in our squad who isn’t very good at attacking, he’s a square peg that needs to be replace

Grealish can play all attacking roles brilliantly, he can play as an 8 (double pivot) too if we are chasing games.

He provides us with a whole host of attacking options.

Pogba can be very effective going forward. He plays the majority of his minutes as a number 6, if he was playing as an 8 he’d score & assist more. He has the best range of passing in our squad.

 

[kafta]

Last summer i would've been convinced that Sancho is by far the most talented, but Grealish has been phenomenal.

Sancho or Grealish would take our front line to a new level. Rice would actually improve our midfield and be a long term replacement for Matic.

Im not sure DCL suits us at all.

 

[rooney2009]

all overpriced and over hyped British players in my opinion
Grealish wants to play on the left but we already have Rashford
Sancho has potential but no-one knows if He is any good

 

[Wednesday at Stoke]

I would not spend 80M on Calvert Lewin until he does this consistently for more than one season. Grealish off of that list for me, easily.

 

[Borys]

Doesn't Grealish play on the left coming inside, so basically same preferred role as Martial, Rashford and Bruno? Every time I see him he plays on the left or centrally, I'm sorry if it's a stupid question but if that's the case I don't see how he fits our team. I might be wrong as I don't know much about him.

We need a right winger, preferably right footed. Or an upgrade on AWB.

Edit: I didn't read the second page, which confirms my Grealish worries.

 

[Idxomer]

Grealish, of course.

 

[SirAnderson]

Grealish isn’t that good at all. He’s merely flavour of the month. Anyone would think he’s scoring and assisting double figures. Also his off the pitch antics have to be taken into account as well. Why spend £80m on a player in a position that isn’t priority? That’s precisely why our squad has so many gaps in it already.

I agree that he isn't a priority, but I don't think its a case of him being the flavour of the month. He has been consistently good for Villa and in the league for some time now, and it would be silly not to see why his so good in his position and that it would be something he could bring to any team he plays in.

Regardless, also don't think we should be stamping out this kind of money for him or either of the mentioned players. I hope we done with the media driven signings pushed on the Board. Ole doing his own work and finding his own gems. If the shiny player fits us, then so be it, but if not, I'm happy to take a risk on an unknown player that has been scouted based on our needs.

 

[Rocknrolla69er]

Can Grealish play in the deeper double pivot role that Oles tried to adapt Pogba too?

Rashford on the left and Bruno are for me our two best players, it'd be a big outlay for a player if we're trying to mould him into a different position than he plays.

In my opinion we bought Van de Beek for Bruno cover, I think the Grealish ship has sailed.

Right wing and a fluid central midfielder, with huge mobility and defensive awareness are the major two prioritys. We don't know how Diallos going to adapt and settle in, has he been bought and that's right wing ticked off? Do the club have enough faith he l solve the position pretty quickly? If yes then all out for the midfield type I've mentioned, if not then we d need a more established RW still.

 

[Bondi77]

So VDS said we were getting a great multi functional midfielder in VDB and a lot of posters preferred him to Grealish and yet now he hardly gets a mention.
Has VDS mugged us right off with this player?

 

[Mark Pawelek]

Most likely none of them as 3 play for English clubs, who always want a huge premium. The other is £100m+. There are bargains in the French market.

 

[georgipep]

Grealish isn’t that good at all. He’s merely flavour of the month. Anyone would think he’s scoring and assisting double figures. Also his off the pitch antics have to be taken into account as well. Why spend £80m on a player in a position that isn’t priority? That’s precisely why our squad has so many gaps in it already.

He has been the flavour of quite a lot of months in a row now....One would say 3 years really...

 

[theklr]

So VDS said we were getting a great multi functional midfielder in VDB and a lot of posters preferred him to Grealish and yet now he hardly gets a mention.
Has VDS mugged us right off with this player?

He just needs time. Fred took a while .

 

[Ballache]

Rice is probably the one we need the most followed by DCL. Rice would allow us to play VDB and Bruno in the same formation and DCL would give us a focal point in attack. But I've been a Grealish fanboi for a long time now so would probably choose him and worry about the formation later.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Grealish definitely... then maybe DCL.

I'm not even convinced Sancho will be that good in this league, and whilst Rice is good, I think you can find better alternatives that won't have the English premium.

 

[DWelbz19]

Sancho or Grealish are the two who fill the biggest holes (even though Grealish plays on the left predominantly). Both ball magnet, creator wide players who can dribble and have shown impressive G/As — mostly Sancho.

Not convinced that Rice is that good, particularly. A decent level midfielder but simply not good value for money. For his talent level you can probably pick up an equivalent across the top 5 leagues for a lower fee.

Calvert Lewin is in an interesting one. He’s in his first major breakout season so he’s a risk, but stylistically he’s a proper classic no.9. You can argue his best trait is his heading; rare to find that in the modern striker. I know this isn’t the most popular take around here, but I really don’t think Martial is the problem for right now. His finishing is in the bin at the moment, but his ability to shoulder defenders and win innocuous fouls is very useful. And in general, we don’t really struggle to score goals at the moment. I’d personally hold off on a Calvert Lewin and wait to see if we can get a Haaland level striker.

 

[dal]

Pogba can be very effective going forward. He plays the majority of his minutes as a number 6, if he was playing as an 8 he’d score & assist more. He has the best range of passing in our squad.

6,8,10,Left Forward - Pogba is terribly inconsistent.

 

[Robbie Boy]

Grealish. Always found him overrated but he's been very good for 18 months now. Seems like the kind that'll work his bollox off. I'm not entirely convinced by Sancho and we have Greenwood, Pellistri and Diallo for that position. Rice is shockingly overrated and I wouldn't touch him. I would be happy to let Chelsea spend silly money on him. Calvert-Lewin? I mean sure but he would cost insane money so best leaving that one.

 

[Eendracht maakt macht]

Grealish because that would add the most pleasure to watching United play.

 

[croadyman]

Sticking with Grealish but can also understand the people who have concerns about his best position being on the LW like Rashford.

He may well be able to play across a few different front positions but we just haven't had the chance to see it yet at Villa.

Did find it interesting that he isn't mentioned in Whitwell's latest Athletic article which suggests he can't see him leaving at the moment.

 

[saivet]

Right now, Grealish is probably the most expensive player on the list. I'm not a big fan of DCL, so I'd say Sancho. I do like Rice but for what he'd cost, there must be better alternatives.