Pep Guardiola started Jack Grealish in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over West Ham United despite the 26-year-old’s poor performance in the Community Shield defeat to Liverpool, but his decision wasn’t vindicated as Grealish was once again average over the 90 minutes.
Read Man City said the England international’s place in the side might be up for grabs when Phil Foden returns, but Guardiola opted to drop Riyad Mahrez instead. And while Grealish did have a couple of dribbles and created a couple of chances at the London Stadium, he wasn’t anywhere near his best.
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Sean Walsh of 90min gave Grealish a player rating of 6/10 and criticised his performance for ‘lacking conviction and courage’. Simon Bajkowski of the Manchester Evening news gave the 26-year-old a player rating of 6/10 and said he was ‘less involved’ than the equally disappointing Foden.
Grealish has been told to stop fearing Guardiola and play with more freedom, but he’s still not taking risks on the ball. The England international is mindful about how his manager hates relinquishing possession cheaply, so he’s playing safe a lot of the time and avoiding low percentage passes.
Grealish completed 92.3% of his passes against West Ham but none of his crosses found a teammate. He had two successful dribbles but didn’t register a shot on target. Guardiola surprised some by sticking with Grealish after his Community Shield performance, but will he keep him in the side against Bournemouth on August 13?
In other news, Pep Guardiola may have problem with Joao Cancelo after two underwhelming performances