New Delhi: Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said that he would like Jack Grealish to earn his spot in the team’s starting line-up and consistently perform in the standards he had set during the club’s treble win in 2023. The 29-year-old has made 14 appearances of the 20 Premier League games this season but started in only six of those games.
Grealish had made 50 appearances for City during the 2022-23 season, scoring five times and making 11 assists to help his side win the Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup.
The former Aston Villa captain has failed to impress this season, time and time again. During City’s 4-1 win over West Ham, Grealish only played six minutes, replacing Erling Haaland in the 84th minute. Brazil international Savinho, signed in the summer for £30.8m from Girona was given the go-ahead to start ahead of Grealish against the Hammers and assisted in both of Haaland’s goals in the win.
Guardiola has said that he will closely work with Grealish to help him regain his old form. The Spanish manager was asked if Grealish could take a leaf from Savinho’s book in order to win back his place in the squad, Guardiola noted that Savinho was chosen in the game only because he was in better touch than the English international. Guardiola admitted that he wanted to have the old Grealish who won the Treble but would keep his hopes realistic.
Jack Grealish needs to fight Savinho for a spot in starting XI
🔵👀 Pep Guardiola on Savinho playing and not Grealish: “They have to compete and now Savinho is in better shape and everything than Jack, and that’s why I play Savinho!”.
“I wanted Jack for the Treble, yeah. But I try to be honest with myself, Savinho deserves”. pic.twitter.com/RS5XgQyvEx
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 5, 2025
Guardiola noted that while it may not always look fair, Grealish needs to fight with Savinho for every game in order to prove that he deserves to be in the squad. Before Christmas, the Premier League giants had suffered nine defeats in 13 games across the competition. Grealish missed two games during the holiday week before returning to the squad for the game against West Ham.
Guardiola further felt that since he was out two weeks ago due to injury, Grealish will need time to regain his rhythm and need to go through training. For the 53-year-old manager, there is little doubt that Grealish is a quality player and can make a huge impact on his day. The six-time Premier League-winning manager concluded that he fought for Grealish to retain his place in the squad, having seen his talent and wanted him to play at his fullest potential at every training and game.
City will next face Salford City in the FA Cup’s 3rd round next weekend before returning to the Premier League next week to face Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Pep Guardiola has said that he would like for Jack Grealish to regain his old form which helped Manchester City’s treble campaign in the 2022-23 season. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
