Will Guardiola Turn Grealish Into a World Beater?
Aston Villa fans may not have been too happy about Jack Grealish’s move to Manchester City, but England supporters will be licking their lips at the prospect of the up-and-coming lion learning under the tutelage of seasoned veteran Pep Guardiola.
The 25-year-old’s move to the Etihad is the major story of the summer, and it’s exciting to think about the ways that Grealish could enhance the champions side while finessing his own form. Overall, this transfer looks to be a wise move for the player, who’s strongly expected to achieve a great number of feats in the years ahead.
Following in De Bruyne’s Footsteps
When Kevin De Bruyne joined the Citizens in 2015 for £55 million, several pundits famously baulked at the fee and said they couldn’t believe that the club had spent so much on the Belgian. Those comments haven’t aged well given that the 30-year-old has since established himself as one of the most complete midfielders in world football over the last five years.
It’s important to remember that Grealish is more highly rated now than De Bruyne was back then: he’s already considered to be one of the best in the Premier League in his position. However, until now, he’s been the main star in a fairly average team. Surrounded by other top players and under the wing of one of the best managers on the planet, it’s easily surmisable that Grealish could match De Bruyne’s success or likelier still, even surpass it.
Making City Even More Dominant
There’s no doubt that Grealish’s contributions will help to make the champions even more dominant and harder for the chasing pack to keep up with. Let’s not forget that the Birmingham-born winger chipped in with an impressive ten goals and six assists in the last campaign, and this was in spite of the fact he ended up missing ten games through injury.
Naturally, City were favoured to retain the title even before Grealish was acquired, but now bookies have had to adjust their odds accordingly to reflect the midfielder’s arrival. At the time of writing, the Premier League Bet UK markets hailed City as odds-on to top the division at the end of the campaign. In addition, they’re also expected to sweep aside Tottenham Hotspur in their season’s debut appearance, with odds of 33/50 for them to win outright. Fans, critics and pundits alike will be watching the first match keenly as it’s sure to be an impactful and insightful opener to the season. Furthermore, it will definitely be interesting to see how exactly Grealish is utilised from the get-go and whether he’s leaving the stables raring to go or easing into his newfound role on the City squad.
Adapting with a Positional Change
City have a wealth of options at their disposal in attack, with Grealish’s favoured position already occupied by the likes of Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden. For a record-breaking fee of £100 million, it would be expected that Grealish will play most games. For this reason, a positional change could well be on the cards.
When De Bruyne first joined City, he’d already played in a variety of positions. Yet Guardiola decided to rebrand him as a free-roaming number eight alongside David Silva. It could be that the Spaniards envisions Grealish as the natural replacement for Silva, who departed the club at the end of the 2019-20 season. This would mean that Grealish could be about to shift from his preferred position on the left of midfield to a more central role.
Making the move to City to study under Guardiola could be the best decision that Grealish will ever make in his career. The former two-time Champions League winner has turned numerous players into legends, and it’s forecasted that he will give Grealish the same legendary treatment.
