LOAN DEAL THE ONLY ROUTE TO GET JACK BACK

HERE is a 'strong possibility' that Jack Grealish could return to Aston Villa this summer but such a move would be most likely on a loan basis.

- ALEX DICKEN

That's according to a report in the Mirror, who assert there remains a chance of a reunion between the club and Grealish, the ex-Villa idol having fallen out of favour at Manchester City, while no longer featuring for England either.

Wages and contractual situation mean a loan exit is likeliest.

The bookies aren’t taking any chances on the possibility of a reunion either, with William Hill offering odds of just 4/1 on a sensational return.

Grealish, who turns 30 in September, left Villa in 2021 when banking his boyhood club £100m, a fee Man City paid which made him then the most expensive English player of all time. He has since won the Premier League three times, as well as the FA Cup and the Champions League.

The winger, though, has fallen down Pep Guardiola's pecking order in more recent months; the additions of Savinho and Jeremy Doku in the past few seasons have made it trickier for Grealish to earn himself a run in the starting XI.