A number of Manchester City players will be taking a good look at themselves this week after a third successive draw in the Premier League – including Jack Grealish.
The England international has been in and out of the starting XI this season due to a combination of injuries and the arrival of Jeremy Doku.
Pep Guardiola’s No.10 did actually step up and remind everyone what he can do by putting Manchester City 3-2 up against Tottenham, in what was a solid cameo appearance.
However, there was one thing Jack Grealish did in the 61st minute that will surely annoy him all week…
What Jack Grealish did in the 61st minute
Well, this was stupid – to put it simply.
Grealish – just nine minutes after replacing Doku – needlessly kicked the ball away after being penalised for a foul by Simon Hooper.
The initial infringement was nothing worthy of a yellow card.
However, Grealish ended up in Hooper’s book as a result of kicking the ball away, meaning he has now been handed a one-game suspension due to accumulating five yellow cards.
Now, that usually wouldn’t be much of a problem, given the presence of Doku and Guardiola’s other experienced options.
Having said that, the timing is awful from Grealish’s point of view.
Jack Grealish sees huge opportunity at Manchester City fizzle out
Doku is a doubt for Wednesday‘s trip to Aston Villa, meaning the 28-year-old would have been highly likely to start against his old side at Villa Park.
Now – however – Grealish will have to sit out, and the Belgian could well have recovered from injury by the time his suspension ends, meaning the opportunity to impress Guardiola at a crucial time has slipped away.
Rodri will also miss Wednesday’s Premier League clash in the Midlands after picking up five yellow cards.
Hopefully, Doku recovers in time for the trip to Villa Park, or else Grealish – who Graeme Souness criticised on Monday – will surely be watching on, thinking about what could have been in the Belgium international’s absence.
