Paul Dickov has suggested that Manchester City winger Jack Grealish is relishing the competition Jeremy Doku has created for a place in Pep Guardiola’s side.
The Englishman has been in and out of the team this season, particularly in the Premier League as he has only started three of the six games he has featured in.
With the Citizens preparing to take on Chelsea this weekend for their latest league match, one pundit and former City player has shared his thoughts on the 28-year-old and his efforts in this campaign.
Dickov praises Grealish
Speaking on talkSPORT, Dickov had this to say about Grealish and his form this season when asked if he thinks the winger needs to add more goals to his game.
He said: “I think so but Jack has been fantastic. I think since the World Cup, especially January time, if you watch Man City regularly from January through to the end of the season when they kicked on and won the Champions League and the treble, Jack was probably, consistently the best player.
“He’s had a couple of injuries this year but that has allowed Doku to come in and settle in a lot better. There’s no doubt that Doku is going to be a superstar but the one thing with Jack, in the derby I thought he was back to his best.
“I saw him briefly after the game at the weekend and I think he’s quite relishing having the competition. I think he feels that Jeremy Doku is going to push him on to another level again and that’s what you want.”
Bearing in mind how Doku has scored two goals and delivered five assists in eight league appearances this season, it’s easy to see why questions have been raised about Grealish’s goalscoring efforts, especially with him failing to find the back of the net on even one occasion this term.
After the 3-0 win over Young Boys in midweek, the England international admitted that he needs to start scoring regularly but was adamant about what he brings to the team.
As Dickov mentioned, the last time Guardiola chose to start Grealish in the Premier League was at Old Trafford against Manchester United, which suggests that the City boss has enough faith in the Englishman to start in big games away from home, which could make him likely to start this weekend against Chelsea.
