Jack Grealish endured a difficult debut season at Manchester City and didn’t come close to justifying the £100m spent last summer, but Alex McLeish is tipping him to make a ‘massive impact’ in 2022/23.
The 26-year-old made 39 appearances in all competitions for City this season, scoring six goals with four assists, so he contributed more goals at Villa in 2019/20 (10 goals, 8 assists) and 2020/21 (7 goals, 12 assists) than this campaign.
Grealish has plenty to prove as a result, but McLeish has faith in the England international, telling the Football Insider: “The way he finished, he made crucial appearances in the last few games.
“I think his hunger will now be increased. Next season, he’ll be saying: ‘People last season were calling me a little bit indifferent. It was indifferent criticism.’ I believe that he’ll want to make a massive impression next season.”
Although Gabriel Jesus has an uncertain future, Grealish will still have competition for a starting place from Raheem Sterling, Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva. And with only three goals scored and three assists made in 26 Premier League games, the 26-year-old needs to hit the ground running next season.
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