Manchester City are used to seeing their players get called up for international duty and feature in big competitions for their countries.
In fact, City had more players from their squad (14) picked to feature in the 2024 European Championship in Germany, four of which made it to the final.
Now that the first international break of the new season has arrived, several figures from Pep Guardiola’s ranks have been picked to play in the upcoming round of Nations League matches.
One of those players has now found himself being spoken about by one pundit who couldn’t conceal his astonishment about what happened to this particular player over the summer.
Paul Merson says it was outrageous that Jack Grealish was not picked for the Euros
After not getting picked by Gareth Southgate to be in the England squad for the 2024 European Championship in the summer, Jack Grealish was recently picked to be in Lee Carsley’s squad for the Three Lions’ upcoming Nations League matches against Ireland and Finland.
Following this news, Paul Merson had this to say in a recent video shared on the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel, about Grealish’s omission from the Euros squad and the fact that he’s back in the frame for this international break’s pair of fixtures.
He said: “How Jack Grealish never went to the Euros is unbelievable. Honestly, in football terms, it’s criminal, absolutely criminal.
“He gets on the ball in tight spaces, teams sit 10 behind the ball, he makes things happen.
“I mean you look back in hindsight now, Gareth [Southgate] took the players away, they never even got a game, so you got to take Jack.
“It’s easy sitting here after but I said at the start he had to go, he plays in tight spaces, he plays for a team that plays against 10 at the back virtually every single week in the Premier League, he’s used to it.
“Certain players are in that squad who play in teams and it’s open. If they win, they win, if they lose, they lose and it becomes an open game because the other team will attack them because they’re better than them. Not when you’re Man City, teams sit 10 behind the ball.
“I’m so pleased he’s back in, so, so pleased.
“I mean it doesn’t matter who you are as a player you want the manager to like you, if the manager doesn’t like you got no chance so you want the manager to like you.
“You need game-changers to win World Cups, you need them, you need game-changers, mavericks they give you something extra.
“Safe won’t win you World Cups, they won’t win you World Cups. Seven, eight out of 10 every week will win the Premier League.
“When you get to competitions you need players who can hit that nine out of 10 nine and a half out of 10 and do something special in one-off games and that’s why, for me, Jack Grealish should always be in the England squad.”
Grealish’s England call-up will give him a confidence boost
After only starting 10 Premier League games last season, the winger told The Athletic that he struggled with his confidence throughout the campaign.
Having then not been picked for the Euros squad, Grealish then said that he would be using that disappointment as motivation to perform at a high level this season.
Now that he has been called up by Carsley for this round of Nations League games, this should be a big confidence boost for the City star.
