Like with many of his Manchester City teammates, it’s been something of a stop-start season for Jack Grealish.
After being overlooked by Gareth Southgate for a place in England’s Euro 2024 squad this summer, the 29-year-old soon got to back work at Etihad, playing in seven of Manchester City’s first eight Premier League games as Pep Guardiola’s side got off to a fast start.
An England recall followed under Lee Carsley, with Grealish netting twice for the interim boss, but an injury has meant that the winger has not been able to contribute during the club’s four-match losing streak which they will be desperate to end after the international break.
During this current break there have been speculative links that Tottenham are interested in signing the former Aston Villa man, although his chances of leaving Manchester City for Spurs have been ruled out by journalist Graeme Bailey. But what does the future hold for Grealish as he looks to return from injury, help turn around City’s fortunes and impress incoming England boss Thomas Tuchel? Our Manchester City News writers have weighed in on what they think needs to happen next.
There is no disputing Grealish’s influence on helping Manchester City control games and how instrumental he was in helping the club win their historic treble in 2023, writes Srinivas Sadhanand. Furthermore, the Englishman is not a touchline winger and as a result, his game is limited by not being able to drift across a variety of areas on the pitch and run the show like he did at Aston Villa.
While Grealish will remain important to City’s prospects of winning silverware this campaign, it is important to note that he turns 30 next September — making him a declining asset.
One of Manchester City’s biggest problems remains the lack of goals in their side and Grealish’s game has never revolved around registering consistent goal contributions. At this point in his career, it would be naive to even expect the decorated attacker’s game to drastically change.
In addition, the former Aston Villa skipper’s worsening injury record means he is not available enough to remain a constant fixture in Pep Guardiola’s side either. With two years left on his deal at the end of the season, it would only be logical to hand the twinkle-toed winger a new contract if he became one of the Sky Blues’ go-to game-changers and extremely durable.
| Season | Games | Goals | Assists |
| 2021/22 | 39 | 6 | 4 |
| 2022/23 | 50 | 5 | 11 |
| 2023/24 | 36 | 3 | 3 |
| 2024/25 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
All signs point towards the sensible outcome being for Manchester City to cash in on Grealish, sign a younger replacement and refresh the fourth oldest squad in the Premier League with an average of 27.9.
With injuries seemingly catching up with Kevin De Bruyne and his contract ending at the end of the season, City’s only reliable match-winners heading into the following campaign could be Erling Haaland and Phil Foden.
Lastly, it is key to remember that as terrific a player as Grealish is, aside from Manchester City’s treble-winning season, he is yet to have another world-class campaign at the Etihad Stadium.
‘What Grealish offers is crucial’
Injuries and off-the-field issues have undoubtedly disrupted his previous season and this current campaign so far, writes James Thompson.
But the winger has shown since the Treble-winning season that he has what it takes to be a vital figure for the team. Even though his record of goal contributions may not be at the level of Kevin De Bruyne or Erling Haaland, what Grealish offers City as part of an overall team setup is crucial.
The Englishman is very similar to Bernardo Silva in the way he’s able to keep control of the ball and move it around the pitch rather than have a sole focus of creating chaos and taking on opposition players to set up goalscoring opportunities. Having been deployed in a more central-attacking midfield role for England under Lee Carsley, this could perhaps be something Pep Guardiola considers to help freshen up City’s midfield once Grealish returns to full fitness.
But in terms of cutting ties with the 29-year-old, the winger still has a lot to offer the club and could play a key role in potentially adding more silverware to their cabinet.
‘Wise to consider offers’
With Grealish’s contract expiring in the summer of 2027, Man City would be wise to consider transfer offers for the winger next year if there has been no considerable upturn in form, says Tom Proctor.
At this point, it’s difficult to make a case for City to keep hold of Grealish due to his lack of goal contributions. People have liked to talk about Grealish’s ball retention ability and the control he brings, but scoring and assisting at least semi-regularly comes with the territory of being a £100m player.
There is also his fitness struggles to factor in. Grealish has spent enough time on the treatment table during his time at City and the club could do with having someone who is a bit more durable, especially if Guardiola is going to stay at the club and continue using a fairly small squad.
Grealish is an extremely likeable player and person, and most fans would love nothing more than to see him get back to the impressive levels he showed in the Treble-winning season. But if a decent offer did come in for him next summer then realistically it’s hard to argue against City sanctioning his exit.
