Manchester City have stepped up their pursuit of Jack Grealish by tabling a British transfer record bid of £100m for the Aston Villa playmaker.
Negotiations between the two Premier League clubs are ongoing but City are understood to have formalised their long-standing interest in Grealish, who is greatly admired by Pep Guardiola.
If agreed for the £100m fee, Grealish would become the most expensive player in English football's history, eclipsing Paul Pogba's £89.6m move to Manchester United from Juventus in 2016.
City’s current club record transfer stands at £64.3m, following the signing of Ruben Dias from Benfica last year. The Etihad club were contacted by The Independent but declined to comment.
Villa intend to offer their captain a new contract in an attempt to keep him at Villa Park, with Grealish set for talks with club officials on his return to training on Monday.
After impressing with England at the European Championship this summer, the 25-year-old is now likely to face a choice between staying at his ambitious boyhood club or moving to the Etihad to test himself in the Champions League.
Grealish's international team-mate Harry Kane is City's other priority transfer target this summer, though Tottenham Hotspur remain determined to keep Kane in north London.
