Manchester City began pre-season last week, with Jack Grealish among those reporting back. However, any hopes of an immediate return were curtailed on Tuesday night when he was not named in the squad flying out for an 11-day tour of Hong Kong and Seoul.
Replying to a social media post suggesting he’d been omitted, Grealish wrote: “Just to let you know I’m still recovering from an injury so I’m not training yet. Haven’t been ‘left out’ so stop talking poo poo thanks.”
Grealish suffered a season-ending foot injury in January while on loan at Everton, just as he was rediscovering his form. The setback curtailed his stint at Hill Dickinson Stadium and dashed a faint chance of making England’s World Cup squad.
After slipping out of favor under former manager Pep Guardiola, Grealish has returned to City with 12 months left on his contract and no sign so far of an extension to his reported £300,000-a-week deal. The ex-Aston Villa captain turns 31 in September, and new head coach Enzo Maresca must decide whether to bring him back into the fold or approve a move away from the Etihad.
Maresca kept his options open last week, saying: “At the moment, he is here. He is a Manchester City player. I always said the same. In any club I join, I like to know if there are players that belong to the club. It’s my duty to try to coach them. Jack is here. I have a good relationship with Jack since I left. Also, we keep in touch, and the reason why is because he has a big heart and he is a very good guy. So this is the reason why and then we see what happens.”
Even so, images appearing to show Grealish drinking during the afternoon twice in the past three months will concern Maresca. Grealish, synonymous with the team’s Treble celebrations in 2023, rejected the “party boy” label at the time, saying he was simply “enjoying himself.” Repeated photos of that nature are unlikely to help his standing or attract suitors.
Grealish has not played competitively since early in the year. Midfielder Kalvin Phillips has also returned to City after a difficult loan at Sheffield United in the Championship last season. Now 30, Phillips’ trajectory has dipped since joining from Leeds in 2022, with only seven minutes of EFL Cup action for City across the past two campaigns. Excluded from the tour squad, he appears to be available for transfer this summer.
City have named an unfamiliar 28-man group for three friendlies abroad, with Erling Haaland, new signing Elliot Anderson, Rayan Cherki and Nico O’Reilly resting after World Cup duty. Experience comes from Gianluigi Donnarumma, Phil Foden, Josko Gvardiol and Antoine Semenyo, alongside several elite development squad players seeking chances.
Maresca’s first match is against Serie A champions Inter Milan on Saturday, followed by games versus K-League All Stars and Atletico Madrid in Seoul next week. As City embark on a new chapter in the Far East, Grealish will be watching closely, hoping his time in sky blue isn’t nearing its end.