10 | Jack Grealish - 2021/22 Performances

[Maly]

I was asking about Beckham because I was trying to establish where the difference in what we see different in terms of quality as players...I never ever rated Bekham as highly as he was in this country....many did....and for me (at present) Im the same with Grealish. It has nothing to do with his profile off the pitch (I coulnt care less about that as long as he doesnt do something like Mendy!----potentially like he has).

For me i rate players like David Silva, Zola, Bergkamp, Henry, Aguero etc much higher than the likes of Beckham and players of his type....those players are on a level or two above Beckham yet somehow he is placed in the same bracket as them?
Maybe its the interpritation of what is great is where we differ which is what I was getting at.
Grealsih is a good player...but he isnt great at the moment and Id argue he shouldnt be starting automatically when fit...could he be great?...yes but a lot of work to be done and he HAS to have the right attitude......does he? We have seen Pep already say something along the likes of needing to be braver in the box (or braver about getting into scoring positions) etc. he also certainly needs to improve his defensive side of his game as we saw what happened to Sane when he didnt/wouldnt.

I dont doubt the step up is huge between Villa and us...think grealish himself has already acknowledged this....something about having to play every 3 days and the importance of those matches every 3 days (or something similar he has said). He may need time to settle in (though he knows the prem and he aint a kid either so that can only be considered for so long).

Give him a chance Si mate

The way I look at it is that Pep looks for 4 main attributes in a player.
1 first touch
2 manipulation of the ball whilst running
3 passing ability
4 not giving the ball away

He has all 4 in abundance, so I’m certain it’s only a matter of time before it clicks for him

I also take into consideration that at Villa he was playing in a team which had acres of space in front of him as they were mainly a counter attacking team, which is the complete opposite of how City play

He’s never played against teams that sit so deep, so again, it will take him a little time to adjust from playing with lots of space vs playing against no space with teams sitting deep

Has he set the world on fire yet? No
Has he been shite so far? No
Do we all expect him to improve under Pep? Fuck yes

So I’ll reserve my judgement on if he’s a great signing for a wee while yet

 

[Maly]

our better performances have come without Grealish in the team however up to now....

As I've been saying to another poster, he is ok at present...nothing more.....there are a number of other players in isolation and as part of the team that are much more responsible for us being where we are at....Silva, Cancello, Rodri, Dias and Walker (unil his brain fart the other night)...id also say Jesus and Foden as well

I think Liverpool away has been our best performance so far this season & im pretty certain he played in that game my friend

 

[alexmcity]

I was asking about Beckham because I was trying to establish where the difference in what we see different in terms of quality as players...I never ever rated Bekham as highly as he was in this country....many did....and for me (at present) Im the same with Grealish. It has nothing to do with his profile off the pitch (I coulnt care less about that as long as he doesnt do something like Mendy!----potentially like he has).

For me i rate players like David Silva, Zola, Bergkamp, Henry, Aguero etc much higher than the likes of Beckham and players of his type....those players are on a level or two above Beckham yet somehow he is placed in the same bracket as them?
Maybe its the interpritation of what is great is where we differ which is what I was getting at.
Grealsih is a good player...but he isnt great at the moment and Id argue he shouldnt be starting automatically when fit...could he be great?...yes but a lot of work to be done and he HAS to have the right attitude......does he? We have seen Pep already say something along the likes of needing to be braver in the box (or braver about getting into scoring positions) etc. he also certainly needs to improve his defensive side of his game as we saw what happened to Sane when he didnt/wouldnt.

I dont doubt the step up is huge between Villa and us...think grealish himself has already acknowledged this....something about having to play every 3 days and the importance of those matches every 3 days (or something similar he has said). He may need time to settle in (though he knows the prem and he aint a kid either so that can only be considered for so long).

Some people may rate Grealish because they find him handsome, but other people such as Pep rate him because of his technical qualities. I can see the similarities between Grealish and Beckham off the pitch, but they are very different as players.

How good can Grealish become? Probably not as good as legends of the PL, but good enough to help us win many trophies. If we were told that Gundogan would be our top scorer in one season and help us win the PL with some crucial goals, we'd have been happy to overpay for him. Ultimately, what justifies transfers are trophies. IF Grealish helps us win the league/CL, we'll be happy, at least most of us.

 

[alexmcity]

our better performances have come without Grealish in the team however up to now....

Chelsea away, PSG away, Liverpool away - Grealish has started in these games. IIRC, the only great performance we had without him was PSG at home. Also, he was one of our better players in the first 4-5 games when Kevin and Foden were unavailable. He did a very good job back then.

 

[simon23]

Give him a chance Si mate

The way I look at it is that Pep looks for 4 main attributes in a player.
1 first touch
2 manipulation of the ball whilst running
3 passing ability
4 not giving the ball away

He has all 4 in abundance, so I’m certain it’s only a matter of time before it clicks for him

I also take into consideration that at Villa he was playing in a team which had acres of space in front of him as they were mainly a counter attacking team, which is the complete opposite of how City play

He’s never played against teams that sit so deep, so again, it will take him a little time to adjust from playing with lots of space vs playing against no space with teams sitting deep

Has he set the world on fire yet? No
Has he been shite so far? No
Do we all expect him to improve under Pep? Fuck yes

So I’ll reserve my judgement on if he’s a great signing for a wee while yet

All for giving him time.....every player needs that as well as having ups and down in form....But there is a difference between not giving the ball away like Grealish does (passes sideways, backwards or draws in a foul) than the likes of a David or Bernardo Silva did/does.....forward passes, riding tackles etc

First touch...id expect it off every premier league professional player

Manipualtion of the ball...he does this to draw fouls but not to beat people...compared to foden for instance or again Bernardo Silva

Not giving the ball away....again id prefer him to take more risks and I belive Pep has hinted at that.

ive never said he has been shit.....he has been ok is what I have said. I would, like you, also expect him to improve under Pep...then again even the likes of me and you would improve working with Pep every day.

Im not judging him as a failure (he cant be, he hasnt reached the end of his journey with city and wont for a number of years so its impossible to him as a failure as success or failure can only be really judged at the end) but Im judging him on what ive seen prior to coming here and since being here....which is a good player but nothing more....certainly not the hype some people on here go on about him. ......As someone said..its a huge step up for him...some players do make that step up....some dont....

My argument at present is that he doesnt get in our best 11 as a starter

 

[simon23]

Chelsea away, PSG away, Liverpool away - Grealish has started in these games. IIRC, the only great performance we had without him was PSG at home. Also, he was one of our better players in the first 4-5 games when Kevin and Foden were unavailable. He did a very good job back then.

results are not the same as performances - Pep always says this

our performances as a team have been better without him (and KDB) in the team

 

[Maly]

All for giving him time.....every player needs that as well as having ups and down in form....But there is a difference between not giving the ball away like Grealish does (passes sideways, backwards or draws in a foul) than the likes of a David or Bernardo Silva did/does.....forward passes, riding tackles etc

First touch...id expect it off every premier league professional player

Manipualtion of the ball...he does this to draw fouls but not to beat people...compared to foden for instance or again Bernardo Silva

Not giving the ball away....again id prefer him to take more risks and I belive Pep has hinted at that.

ive never said he has been shit.....he has been ok is what I have said. I would, like you, also expect him to improve under Pep...then again even the likes of me and you would improve working with Pep every day.

Im not judging him as a failure (he cant be, he hasnt reached the end of his journey with city and wont for a number of years so its impossible to him as a failure as success or failure can only be really judged at the end) but Im judging him on what ive seen prior to coming here and since being here....which is a good player but nothing more....certainly not the hype some people on here go on about him. ......As someone said..its a huge step up for him...some players do make that step up....some dont....

My argument at present is that he doesnt get in our best 11 as a starter

If Barry Daffern & Jon Shacklock couldn’t improve us both as kids at the Mighty Lane, I don’t think Pep would be able to either ;)

The phrase can’t polish a turd springs to mind!!

If you’re up this way visiting your old fella over Christmas, drop me a line mate. Would love to grab a pint having not seen you for 30 years. I’ll get my old fella to come out too if he’s about

 

[alexmcity]

results are not the same as performances - Pep always says this

our performances as a team have been better without him (and KDB) in the team

You don't rate our performances at Chelsea, PSG and Liverpool? I'm afraid I'm wasting my time.

 

[Txiki Txiki Bang Bang]

Chelsea away, PSG away, Liverpool away - Grealish has started in these games. IIRC, the only great performance we had without him was PSG at home. Also, he was one of our better players in the first 4-5 games when Kevin and Foden were unavailable. He did a very good job back then.

He was absolutely useless in the PSG and Liverpool away games. I believe he would come good but at least we owe it to ourselves to be honest.

 

[applejuice]

He was absolutely useless in the PSG and Liverpool away games. I believe he would come good but at least we owe it to ourselves to be honest.

I won't judge him about PSG away game because I think that City did not put 100% effort because the team was tired.

About the Liverpool away game, Grealish played mainly in the 1st half. I have an unpopular view - I think that he did better than people thought of. As Pep said Jack Grealish has played 'better than he believes' - maybe referring to this instance. Maybe not excellent but certainly not useless.

He made critical linked up play in several Foden's chances in the first half. In the first half, remember Milner's first yellow? Grealish made the critical half turn pass to Foden (Bernado tried moment earlier but did not succeed). Remember Foden ran down the wing and made a cross but KDB arrived late? The chance was created by Grealish dropped deep and got the ball out with Bernado. Remember KDB made a good pass to Foden? Grealish dropped deep and did something like pick and roll to help KDB.

He was part of the reason why City had such a total domination in the first half. IF KDB buried that header or Foden managed a shot, it would be a total different view.

In the post game interview, Pep said that he was very happier with the 1st half.

IMO I think that the turning point of his form this season came with that unjust sub in England vs Hungary game. Southgate subbed him off when he was easily the best player on the pitch. Even Linker was stunned and angry at Southgate. I think that it was a big confidence blow and since then he looked like an unsettled soul.

In all I think that he played okay so far. I expect more but I won't say he is bad. I will give a 6.5 out of 10.