Aston Villa transfer news: Jack Grealish cited as ‘crazy’ £10m-a-year offer reportedly readied – pundit
Alan Hutton has suggested Aston Villa are prepared to pay “crazy” money to sign Kalvin Phillips from Leeds United.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the former Villa defender claimed his old side may have to break their current wage structure to get the 26-year-old on board.
As reported by the Times on Sunday (20 March), Villa are preparing a £60million bid for Phillips and are ready to offer a £10million-a-year – or around £192,000-a-week – wage package.
Hutton insisted players of Phillips’ calibre would have “Champions League” wage demands.
He suggested the Leeds midfielder could be lifted into the same bracket Jack Grealish was in before his move to Manchester City.
Reacting to the prospective offer, Hutton told Football Insider’s Russell Edge: “Wow. They certainly mean business.
“During my time, Jack Grealish was the highest earner and you understand why. He was the key player. Then underneath that, it was all structured.
“If you’re looking at a £60million fee and we’re talking those sort of numbers, wow, that’s crazy. The thing you need to remember is Villa, at this moment in time, the process has been excellent.
“They’ve done unbelievably well to get to where they are. If they want to get to the next level and you’re talking about going for top four or five, these are the type of players you need in the building.
“These are the wage demands that a lot of them have. I’m not talking about just Phillips but in general. Players of that calibre coming in want to play Champions League. They want to be paid like a Champions League player.
“This is something that Villa are obviously keen to move into.”
In other news, Aston Villa are plotting a “world-class” signing as “huge” funds set aside.