Grealish tipped to be omitted from Aston Villa XI v Tottenham after Smith update
Alan Hutton has admitted he is not expecting Jack Grealish to return to the Aston Villa starting XI against Tottenham.
The former Holte End favourite, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, suggested the 25-year-old would have to settle for a place on the bench after his recent injury layoff.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Dean Smith admitted Villa were hopeful their midfield talisman would be back for the visit of Spurs this coming Sunday.
So far, Grealish has sat out defeats to Leicester City and Sheffield United, draws against Wolves and Newcastle and the win over Leeds.
However, despite Smith’s optimism at having the 25-year-old back, Hutton has suggested he may have to wait until after the international break.
Hutton told Football Insider assistant editor Russell Edge: “We’re all hoping, I guess, but it doesn’t seem likely. That’s not that I’ve heard anything, that’s just how I’m looking at it.
“Obviously he’s been out for a number of weeks now. I wouldn’t have thought they would chuck him into such a big game after missing out on the previous games.
“I thought when the beat Leeds away from home without him, I thought that was maybe a turning point for them.
“They’ve still been a little bit inconsistent without him. They’ve found it difficult to break teams down. Jack’s their star man, we all know that it’s going to be difficult without him.
“It was about trying to find a way to cope without him and they just haven’t quite been able to.
“It’s obviously difficult, it’s frustrating for everybody. We saw it against Newcastle, it was a terrible performance for both teams really. It was a really dire game.
“I’m just like a fan. The quicker we get Jack Grealish back, the better.”
In other news, Aston Villa have set their sights on signing ‘the next Jack Grealish’ this summer.