Manchester City Ready to Accept Massive Financial Hit on Jack Grealish Transfer
Manchester City are reportedly prepared to sell Jack Grealish for significantly less than half the £100 million ($136.6 million) transfer fee they invested in him during 2021.
Grealish has transformed from City's most expensive signing into a costly burden for Pep Guardiola. Following an initial adjustment period that evolved into an impressive run as the team's wide playmaker during their 2022–23 treble-winning campaign, persistent injuries have severely restricted the English player's contributions.
The attacking midfielder notably failed to find the net even once for his club throughout the entirety of 2024. Grealish has managed to score just three goals in the opening weeks of 2025.
The ex-Aston Villa player couldn't add to his limited goal count at this summer's Club World Cup after being excluded from Manchester City's traveling squad. Guardiola carefully avoided direct criticism of Grealish when explaining this significant omission while strongly suggesting a departure was imminent.
Grealish faces no shortage of interested clubs. Multiple Premier League teams have joined forces with European and international clubs in expressing their desire to sign the 29-year-old. Nevertheless, the financial requirements of any potential deal have proved too expensive for most interested parties.
To speed up Grealish's departure, City are reportedly prepared to consider bids as low as £40 million ($54.6 million), according to the Manchester Evening News.
This would result in a £60 million ($81.9 million) financial loss, easily becoming the largest single-player loss in City's club history, exceeding the £45 million ($61.5 million) deficit from Kyle Walker's discounted transfer to Burnley.
Despite City potentially lowering their asking price, questions remain about whether Grealish will be equally flexible regarding his wage demands. Currently believed to be among the club's top earners, the frequently injured attacker still has two years remaining on his high-value contract.
Grealish is unlikely to be the sole departure from City. Guardiola concluded the previous season by threatening to resign unless management trimmed the squad size this summer. "I told the club I don't want that [a larger squad]," the Spanish manager stated in May.
"I don't want to leave five or six players in the freezer. I don't want that. I will quit. Make a shorter squad, I will stay. It's impossible for my soul to [tell] my players in the [stands] that they cannot play."