Guardiola Calls On Grealish To Reclaim His Treble-Winning Performance For Manchester City

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Pep Guardiola has called on Jack Grealish to regain the form he displayed during Manchester City's successful treble season. Grealish played 50 matches in the 2022-23 season, contributing to City's Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League victories with five goals and 11 assists. However, his performance has dipped since then.

Grealish's current season has been challenging. He started only six of his 14 Premier League games and provided just one assist. In City's recent 4-1 victory over West Ham, he was benched until the 84th minute, while Savinho started and assisted both of Erling Haaland's goals.

Guardiola expressed his desire for Grealish to compete for his position against Savinho. "Savinho is in better shape and everything than Jack, and that's why I played Savinho [against West Ham]. Do I want the Jack that won the Treble? Yeah, I want it, but I try to be honest with myself for that," Guardiola stated.

He further added, "They have to fight. You can say it's unfair. OK, if you think that, then it's fine, but you have to prove [to me], 'OK, I'm going to fight with Savinho, to deserve to play in that position', every single day, every single week and every single month."

This season has also seen Grealish dealing with injuries that have limited his playing time. Despite creating 22 chances in his 14 league appearances, he has only managed 13 shots without scoring a goal. His last goal for City came against Crystal Palace in December 2023.

Guardiola acknowledged these challenges: "Two weeks ago, Jack was injured, and he needs rhythm and to play but players need training." He emphasized the importance of being at one's best consistently.

Guardiola's Confidence in Grealish

Despite these struggles, Guardiola remains confident in Grealish's abilities. "I don't have any doubt about the quality of Jack or any of these players," he said. Guardiola highlighted his efforts to bring Grealish into the team and expressed belief in his potential.

"I fought a lot for him, fought a lot to be here. I know that he can do it because I saw him. I saw his level and I want that, every single training session and every single game," Guardiola concluded.