Aston Villa: Smith struck gold over “magnificent” star sold for 2400% more

Aston Villa have made some strong sales over the years, with one standing out from the rest in terms of profit…

Aston Villa are enjoying a new-found level of success under Unai Emery, with the Villans back among European competition and continuing to climb the table following the Spaniard’s arrival.

When the former Villarreal boss took charge from Steven Gerrard in October 2022, Villa were sat in 16th place in the Premier League table with little direction and fluctuating form, form that he immediately turned around to see his side finish 7th last term.

A successful summer in the transfer market put the Villans in good stead to progress beyond their 7th place finish in 2022/23, and while a lot of the club’s recent progression is thanks to Emery, there is another figure that enabled everything to unfold as it has today.

When Villa sold Jack Grealish in 2021, many were anxious over the void that the Bodymoor Heath product would leave in the squad however the £100m profit that was generated from the sale proved to be integral to the club’s development.

How long was Jack Grealish at Aston Villa for?

A product of Villa’s budding academy, Grealish lived his childhood dream in representing the Midlands side for 19 years of his playing career, joining at the age of six and leaving as the club’s captain.

The Englishman made a total of 213 appearances for Villa over the years, scoring 32 goals and registering 43 assists in all competitions for the first team.

Deployed as both an attacking midfielder and a left-winger, the academy graduate was handed his league debut in 2014, playing two minutes against Manchester City.

The following term in the 2014/15 campaign, the Birmingham-born ace made his breakthrough into the first team by securing 17 appearances, added to the season after where he recorded 15 top-flight appearances.

It was in the Championship that Grealish began to really impose himself as more than a sporadic talent in the ranks at Villa Park, where in the 2016/17 season he contributed to five goals and five assists in 31 league appearances.

The academy graduate’s importance to his boyhood club became paramount, as he continued to be the integral source behind the attacking threat in the squad, amounting to him being named club captain in 2019 following Villa’s promotion back to the Premier League.

In 2021, the lifelong Villan flew the nest to sign for Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, ending his playing days in claret and blue with 96 top-flight appearances.

How much was Jack Grealish worth at Aston Villa?

While it was difficult for Villa to see Grealish depart, the club can take credit for the midfielder’s rise to stardom and development through the ranks at Bodymoor Heath.

Back in the summer of 2015 after a partial breakthrough into the first-team squad, the youngster’s expected transfer value (xTV) was recorded by FootballTransfers as being in the region of €4.4m (£4m).

There was a consistent growth in Grealish’s market value whilst at Villa, highlighted by FootballTransfers when revising his xTV during the transfer window periods.

In the January window of 2020, the Englishman’s xTV had risen to €10.9m (£9.4m) which soared to a figure of €30.9m (£26.7m) by that summer, highlighting just how much of a gold mine Villa were sitting on by developing his talents.

The winter window of 2021 saw his xTV hit €50.8m (£44m), following an identical pattern to the year prior as it rose again by the summer to €68m (£58.9m) a month before his move to Manchester.

Dean Smith sold his star player for £100m in 2021, pulling off Villa’s biggest-ever sale and showcasing just how successful the story of a six-year-old hopeful at his boyhood team can be for both player and club.

What is Jack Grealish’s market value now?

It’s expected in the market nowadays for a player to be sold way beyond their expected value, taking into consideration other elements such as contract and as highlighted by Villa, how detrimental losing one player could be to a squad.