Gary Lineker has told BBC Sport that it was lovely to see Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish so delighted for Raheem Sterling after he scored.
Sterling was controversially selected at the expense of Grealish yesterday for England’s game against Croatia.
The Villa captain could have been forgiven for cutting a rather miserable figure on the sidelines.
Grealish had been England’s best player in the build-up games, and the call not to start him looked harsh.
However, Sterling helped to vindicate Gareth Southgate’s decision, as he scored the only goal on the game in England’s 1-0 win.
Grealish was one of the first players on the scene to celebrate with Sterling after he found the back of the net.
And Lineker thought that the Villa man’s reaction highlighted the togetherness of the squad.
“It was lovely to see that reception from not just the players on the pitch towards Raheem, but those warming up on the sidelines there,” Lineker said.
“You could see Rashford and Grealish. It shows what it means, they have a togetherness and when you have a big squad like that, that’s key.”
Grealish to play a part?
It will now be interesting to see whether Grealish is used by Southgate on Friday against Scotland.
The Villa captain did not even make it off the bench yesterday, meaning he should be fresh at the very least.
If Grealish is to start, it may be more likely that he replaces Mason Mount or Phil Foden than Sterling now, given the Manchester City winger’s big influence on the opener.
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