Manchester City were held to a hard-fought-for point against Newcastle United on Saturday but one player stood out once again.
Pep Guardiola’s side were unable to get back to winning ways in the North East despite taking the lead through Josko Gvardiol’s fine first-half strike.
Newcastle United hit back in the second half when Anthony Gordon converted the penalty he won after being upended by Ederson in the area, though the winger was certainly looking for the foul.
Manchester City weathered a barrage from the Magpies as the raucous home crowd bellowed their team on and battled hard to hold on to their point.
It could have even been a win if Nick Pope wasn’t on hand to make a string of superb saves but it is another two points dropped for City following last weekend’s draw with Premier League title rivals Arsenal.
It’s been a tough week for the Blues after it was confirmed Rodri will miss the whole of the season with an ACL tear and meniscus damage so to come away with a well-earned point isn’t a terrible result, even if it’s disappointing.
While City impressed with their physicality and determination, their play on the ball was far from its rhythmic best but one player managed to really impress. Once again, it was Jack Grealish.
Jack Grealish stats vs Newcastle United are impressive
Gvardiol may have won the Player of the Match award from Ally McCoist but it was Grealish who was the stand-out.
The winger has been getting back to his best form this season, growing in confidence and getting bolder on the ball.
Grealish was fantastic against Watford on Tuesday but the Hornets are a mid-table Championship side. He needed to follow it up and continue playing well in the Premier League. That’s exactly what he did.
After setting up Jeremy Doku in mid-week, Grealish was at it again by providing the ball to Gvardiol to score.
That was just one of the five chances he created in the game, more than any other player. In 52 touches he managed a 97% passing accuracy, three successful dribbles, two passes into the final third, six touches in the opposition box and was fouled five times.
After earning criticism for floating through games and not having an impact going forward, Grealish’s influence on City’s build-up play is growing with every match.
Once more, his stats off the ball make for impressive reading as well. Grealish won eight ground duels, recovered the ball three times and made two blocks.
Those stats also don’t take into account the hits he rolled and the battles he engaged in, especially with Sandro Tonali. He’s making vital contributions at both ends of the pitch.
Is Jack Grealish becoming undroppable again?
Grealish was one of Guardiola’s most important players during the treble season but lost his spot in the side last term.
It looked like it would be more of the same this year as he didn’t start the first two games but he has now started three of the last four and played 90 minutes against Inter and Watford, too.
Even the game he didn’t start in, the draw with Arsenal, he made the difference after coming on by forcing the chance that John Stones equalised from.
Though it didn’t go down as an assist, he made the goal and that’s three games in a row in which he has done so. The same as he managed in the whole of last season. In fact, Grealish is only six more league starts away from matching the 10 he started last year.
It’s clear Grealish has fought his way back into Guardiola’s strongest side and should remain there going forward. He might be undroppable again.
