10 | Jack Grealish - 2021/22 Performances

[Agueroooo9320]

I think I posted this video before, but it's worth repeating:



He has SO much in his locker. If he's not doing it now, it's because he's being told not to, or because we just need to give him a little time and patience, as we've had to with every new signing.

Part of it is him adapting to us - how we play, and what to expect of his teammates. And part of it is us adapting to him - finding him a role that best suits his skills. I think he clearly needs players in front of him and running past him, so we need to work out where to put him on the pitch so he can work with that.

anyone still crying about Jack's performance I suggest you watch this video and watch closely where he pick's up the ball. all of his best play dribbling and passing come from the inside channel between the middle of the pitch and the touch line essentially where cancelo plays for us. he very rarely hugs the touchline like sterling, from the touchline his only skill is crossing which is useless to us not playing without a forward with heading ability.

the only reason he is not upto expectations is because he is in the wrong position on the pitch and cancelo is essentially using up his part of the pitch. unless he is moved more inside I don't expect to see his best.

 

[schfc6]

anyone still crying about Jack's performance I suggest you watch this video and watch closely where he pick's up the ball. all of his best play dribbling and passing come from the inside channel between the middle of the pitch and the touch line essentially where cancelo plays for us. he very rarely hugs the touchline like sterling, from the touchline his only skill is crossing which is useless to us not playing without a forward with heading ability.

the only reason he is not upto expectations is because he is in the wrong position on the pitch and cancelo is essentially using up his part of the pitch. unless he is moved more inside I don't expect to see his best.

Well, he won’t be moved inside because he’s nowhere near good enough to play centrally for us..

It would take injuries to Bernardo, Gundogan, De Bruyne & Foden for him to play centrally for us.

I agree, he doesn’t hug the touchline, he’s not that type of player. He’s a wide forward cutting in. His comparison in our squad would be Mahrez, who like Grealish likes to pin his fullback wide, then come on the inside where the space would be. Sadly to date, he’s not been dangerous enough doing this, mainly because he’s not quick enough of thought yet to do so. I suspect he’ll be working on this.

It’s no surprise that our best form has come in the last month. We look much more cohesive of late.

Hopefully Grealish will get a chance to shine now we have our game and midfield flying.

 

[Agueroooo9320]

Well, he won’t be moved inside because he’s nowhere near good enough to play centrally for us..

It would take injuries to Bernardo, Gundogan, De Bruyne & Foden for him to play centrally for us.

I agree, he doesn’t hug the touchline, he’s not that type of player. He’s a wide forward cutting in. His comparison in our squad would be Mahrez, who like Grealish likes to pin his fullback wide, then come on the inside where the space would be. Sadly to date, he’s not been dangerous enough doing this, mainly because he’s not quick enough of thought yet to do so. I suspect he’ll be working on this.

It’s no surprise that our best form has come in the last month. We look much more cohesive of late.

Hopefully Grealish will get a chance to shine now we have our game and midfield flying.

and who told you this? Just because you say this does not make it true.

he is better than Foden for sure. There is a reason he has not played midfield for us. maybe after many years he will move there but right now not a chance Foden is as good as Grealish in the middle and controlling the tempo.

I would say Grealish can become as good as Gundogan within a season if he is given a chance to develop in the middle.

De Bruyne & Bernardo I agree are levels above anything Grealish has shown so far.

 

[FromPollockToSilva]

and who told you this? Just because you say this does not make it true.

he is better than Foden for sure. There is a reason he has not played midfield for us. maybe after many years he will move there but right now not a chance Foden is as good as Grealish in the middle and controlling the tempo.

I would say Grealish can become as good as Gundogan within a season if he is given a chance to develop in the middle.

De Bruyne & Bernardo I agree are levels above anything Grealish has shown so far.

I don't disagree that Jack can and almost certainly will develop into a central player for us, but Gündy is also leagues ahead of Grealish in that role right now

 

[ChicagoBlue]

anyone still crying about Jack's performance I suggest you watch this video and watch closely where he pick's up the ball. all of his best play dribbling and passing come from the inside channel between the middle of the pitch and the touch line essentially where cancelo plays for us. he very rarely hugs the touchline like sterling, from the touchline his only skill is crossing which is useless to us not playing without a forward with heading ability.

the only reason he is not upto expectations is because he is in the wrong position on the pitch and cancelo is essentially using up his part of the pitch. unless he is moved more inside I don't expect to see his best.

As you may have surmised, Pep likes players who can play all over the park, not just in their preferred “go anywhere, do anything” role they may have played at their old club.

In addition, every player has a highlight reel and they are usually a misrepresentation of the other 99.9% of their play!

In this case, Grealish has been asked to fulfill a role in THIS team, until he completely understands the system and doesn’t lose the ball in a critical position.

While £100M is an eye watering figure, it’s meaningless to Pep when he’s formulating his tactical plan for the TEAM.

At present, he is using Bernardo as his only “free” player, even though Bernardo is not really playing a “free” role. As you saw yesterday, Bernardo was playing as the 4th pressing player, because he has the engine that can no only do that, but pop up across our AM line in any position, with Ferna & Rodri playing behind him, and Mahrez & Sterling required to drop in on the wings to solidify the midfield.

You saw this to great effect when, late in the game, Cancelo went on a run, lost the ball, but followed through on the run to put the keeper under pressure.

Mahrez dropped in to RB, and Jesus came out wide right, taking up a RM position. The ball came over the top to Mahrez at RB and he tidied it up with a pass back to Ederson.

On the way back to his position, Cancelo acknowledged both Jesus and Mahrez for the cover. This is City teamwork.

To date, I have not seen anything from Grealish to suggest the stamina or mobility of a Bernardo, or the trust to protect the ball in that critical area of the pitch.

None of that suggests he won’t get there, just that he’s not there yet.

 

[applejuice]

I agree, he doesn’t hug the touchline, he’s not that type of player. He’s a wide forward cutting in. His comparison in our squad would be Mahrez, who like Grealish likes to pin his fullback wide, then come on the inside where the space would be. Sadly to date, he’s not been dangerous enough doing this, mainly because he’s not quick enough of thought yet to do so. I suspect he’ll be working on this.

He did cut inside when it was needed/right thing to do. For example in the game vs Palace first half, Sliva made a though ball to him and Grealish carried the ball cutting inside - passed it to Rodri to pass it to Jesus who was unmarked in a very good shooting position. This was a very good play but sadly the shoot very blocked.

But currently City's play plan does not emphasize this - it is very easy to tell.

Most of the time when Grealish picks up the ball, other city players won't run behind to clear the cutting inside pathway and many times they stand in the cutting inside route. (Noticeably Cancelo) So this indicates cutting inside is not part of game plan.

May tell the difference how United played wish Mason Greenwood on the right this season. When Greenwood picks up the ball, others will run forward to clear the cutting inside pathway. Happened in the Derby as well.


IMO it is a right call.

These cutting insides thing are more or less a trick for midtable teams nowadays - so simple that even Ole can manage it...

City plays a more complicated game.

 

[schfc6]

and who told you this? Just because you say this does not make it true.

he is better than Foden for sure. There is a reason he has not played midfield for us. maybe after many years he will move there but right now not a chance Foden is as good as Grealish in the middle and controlling the tempo.

I would say Grealish can become as good as Gundogan within a season if he is given a chance to develop in the middle.

De Bruyne & Bernardo I agree are levels above anything Grealish has shown so far.

Sorry, I don’t mean to do any disservice to Grealish, he’s a fine player but he’s miles behind Foden. Like miles.

He’s even further behind Gundogan.

 

[hilts]

and who told you this? Just because you say this does not make it true.

he is better than Foden for sure. There is a reason he has not played midfield for us. maybe after many years he will move there but right now not a chance Foden is as good as Grealish in the middle and controlling the tempo.

I would say Grealish can become as good as Gundogan within a season if he is given a chance to develop in the middle.

De Bruyne & Bernardo I agree are levels above anything Grealish has shown so far.

Better than Foden? Haha pmsl

 

[VOOMER]

and who told you this? Just because you say this does not make it true.

he is better than Foden for sure. There is a reason he has not played midfield for us. maybe after many years he will move there but right now not a chance Foden is as good as Grealish in the middle and controlling the tempo.

I would say Grealish can become as good as Gundogan within a season if he is given a chance to develop in the middle.

De Bruyne & Bernardo I agree are levels above anything Grealish has shown so far.

That would be his own eyes

 

[Lauz9888]

I'm going to say where I am with him, then I'm going to leave it for a while to see how he plays. He's only played 10 mins since coming back from injury and we're already disagreeing about him.

I think he's very talented. I think he offers us something different (note I don't say better or worse, just different) to our other options. His composure on the ball helps relieve pressure and bring calmness to a performance. He draws opposition players to him, creating space for his teammates, and he has the skill to find those teammates even when he's surrounded. He has a very nice range and weight of pass, and he moves the ball into dangerous positions while still maintaining control.

I think that, for a player who seems to have been given very little tactical instruction at his previous club, he's showing himself to be coachable, flexible, and open to taking on new ideas. There doesn't seem to be much ego about him - he knows how good the rest of the team are, he knows how good Pep is, so he's listening and working hard and doing what he's told.

I think what he achieved at Villa took a whole load of mental strength, leadership and accepting personal responsibility, as well as patience when he was creating all those chances and his colleagues so rarely finished them off.

I think his decision to come to City - to choose having to prove himself and justify his place in a team in the face of scepticism and criticism and trying to stand out alongside world-class players, rather than spending his whole career at Villa, being obsessively loved and retiring a hero whether they achieved anything or not - took courage, ambition, and resilience.

I think those are all good qualities and we're better off for having yet another presence like that, on and off the pitch.

I don't think he's hit anywhere near his best with us yet. I'd like to see him shooting more, and taking a few more risks, if he's in a good position and well-covered and there's no forward pass on.

I worry a little bit about his stamina and ability to play 90 minutes a couple of times a week at the intensity Pep demands. I worry about his injury history.

I think there are going to potentially be tweaks to his position in the future. I think he's potentially lacking a little bit of confidence, because he's still adjusting to such a big change. He sometimes comes across as a little hesitant for us, in a way he didn't for Villa.

But history tells me that no player joins us and is immediately the best they'll be. I've seen enough of him, and enough of our club, to be confident that this is almost certainly going to be another transfer that we look back on a few months or a year down the line and wonder what we were thinking to have those doubts.