Manchester City star Kevin de Bruyne has revealed he rates Jack Grealish “very highly” despite the Aston Villa midfielder failing to make an appearance during Belgium’s 2-1 defeat by England in the Nations League on Sunday.
Grealish was forced to watch from the bench despite stealing the show for the Three Lions against Wales last week. The fact the Villa star wasn’t at least brought on as a substitute yesterday annoyed many England fans, who felt he deserved to play.
De Bruyne started the game for Belgium but ended up on the losing side. The Belgian faced the media after the game and, like many England fans, felt Grealish deserved a chance with the England national team.
He said, as reported by Birmingham Live: “I rate him very highly. He’s somebody I mentioned, talking to teammates at Manchester City, in a random conversation. In England, they talked about creative problems in midfield, but he brings that. He deserves a shot.”
Grealish had a very good game against Wales last week. The Englishman has been impressive for Aston Villa in the Premier League as well since the start of last season.
The 25-year-old was one of the biggest reasons Villa survived in the Premier League last term. His start to this campaign has been brilliant as well. Grealish scored twice and assisted three times in the shock 7-2 thrashing of Liverpool, which earned him a 10/10 rating (WhoScored).
A big chunk of the season has yet to be played and Grealish will remain Villa’s most important player. If he can continue his good performances, Gareth Southgate will be left with little choice but to include him in his squad for next summer’s Euros.
The Three Lions boss has been reluctant to use Grealish regularly but Aston Villa and England fans have been urging Southgate to give the midfielder a chance.
The England boss doesn’t appear convinced – but the seal of approval from arguably the best midfielder in the Premier League could do the trick.
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