Jack Grealish | Man City

acolyte

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He already looks like City’s best player.
I have no doubt this is true for some. Some of you only have eyes for Grealish after all, so I'd be surprised if you noticed anyone else on the pitch.
 

Berbaclass

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They made a good point about space on Sky. Saying he had more space to run into at Villa as they were quite often defending then countering. With City he will more often than not come uo against teams defending deep and compact etc.
 

el_loco_bielsa

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He’s just a staggeringly bizarre buy for city. I mean, Pep buys players for his system and always has done. They may flop, but you could never look at a pep buy and say you were struggling to understand the purpose behind the purchase.

So then he goes out and purchases an English show pony for an eye watering sum who provides absolutely nothing above and beyond the players he already has, and has nothing statistically exceptional to show for his performances by the grand old age of 25 to justify the £100m fee.

He’s inferior to Sterling as a left sided forward. He’s inferior to de bruyne as a creative midfielder. He’d be inferior to mahrez as a right sided forward. He’d be no better than Bernardo Silva as a right sided midfielder.

He’s not a false or a true 9, he’s not a defensive midfielder so can’t deputise for an ageing Fernandinho. So why was he bought, particularly when they’re playing a substandard Mendy at left back and Jesus/Torres as a striker?
 
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berbatrick

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Forgetting the Etoo plus cash swap for Ibra?
nah, there was some semblance of a plan there - after what chelsea did to them in the CL, they needed an alternative route to goal.
buying that alternative for a record fee, selling your well-integrated main striker, and having the new guy compete with the GOAT for the same position - that was the less worked out part of the plan :lol:
 

Cee90

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So he did he or didn’t he have a good game? I didn’t watch it, but the responses on here to his performance seems varied.
 

Glorio

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That’s his whole remit, though. Give it to super Jack and let him dribble for a bit. It’s going to take some going to drain the heroball out of him.
You take that out of him and isn't he then just ordinary? What else does he bring to the table that's at an elite level?
 

DWelbz19

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You take that out of him and isn't he then just ordinary? What else does he bring to the table that's at an elite level?
His chance creation stats/assists (actual and expected) are very high, tbf. He’s a very creative player, but he is one who slows play a lot and main asset is his dribbling/progressively carrying to draw fouls.

He doesn’t score a lot at all, nor does he press/make much of a defensive contribution, but yeah — can he keep his high chance creation stats playing at City whilst also being expected to dwell less on the ball? Can he add goals to his game? Those are probably the two main questions around him.
 

pratyush_utd

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It's weird timeline isn't it that United fans are getting pissed off at people mocking the performance of a rival team most expensive player. I can see Grealish is a good player but I don't know what is driving this cult following. He has achieved feck all in his career both at personal and at team level. But if you read some of the comments that have been posted here it seems like he is the second coming of Jesus himself ( not City player)
 

11101

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He’s just a staggeringly bizarre buy for city. I mean, Pep buys players for his system and always has done. They may flop, but you could never look at a pep buy and say you were struggling to understand the purpose behind the purchase.

So then he goes out and purchases an English show pony for an eye watering sum who provides absolutely nothing above and beyond the players he already has, and has nothing statistically exceptional to show for his performances by the grand old age of 25 to justify the £100m fee.

He’s inferior to Sterling as a left sided forward. He’s inferior to de bruyne as a creative midfielder. He’d be inferior to mahrez as a right sided forward. He’d be no better than Bernardo Silva as a right sided midfielder.

He’s not a false or a true 9, he’s not a defensive midfielder so can’t deputise for an ageing Fernandinho. So why was he bought, particularly when they’re playing a substandard Mendy at left back and Jesus/Torres as a striker?
Because City are trying to assemble two title winning teams to back each other up, whatever the cost.

When we were rumoured to be in for him, most of us thought he would be a back up to Bruno. He's definitely not going to get a much higher standing at City.
 

bosnian_red

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Why not show last season? The stats are similar and they both missed games through injury. I mean, it's not like he wasn't contributing to at least a goal or assist per game until he got injured. So 20+ assists if he'd stayed healthy really isn't mind blowing.
Extrapolation doesn't work in football. If he could get those numbers, he would. Simple as. Being fit is a big quality too. He's almost 26, he's had multiple chances to be a very productive player by now in his career.
 
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Thought he grafted well enough and won a few fouls as he always does, but he looked lost and started tring to force things towards the end.

I'd struggle to say anyone in the City team looked decent. De Bruyne made a big difference when he came on but that was it. It's not like Spurs were that great but they were comfortably better and should have won by more.
I felt he got lost because he was literally fighting alone for ages up until KDB came on. City looked like they hadn't played a minute of pre season. It was very strange.
 

acolyte

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Why stop there? He's already the league's best player!
Haven't you been paying attention? He's been the league's best player since he got injured last season. Basically the less he plays the more his reputation is enhanced.
 
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I don't get it either, to me it shows he's holding on to the ball too long tbh

Grealish is a fantastic player but he's just not really what City needed, he wasn't the final piece of the puzzle, they've got so many players that can do the job he will be expected to do, is he really streets above Sterling, Mahrez, Silva etc ?

Chelsea pay 120m for Lukaku which again is far too much for him but you can understand why they done that, they need exactly that type of player to become more complete, City also needed a proper striker and might still get Kane but if it just ends up being Grealish it doesn't really improve them or elevate them more than what they already are.
He is streets ahead of what Bernardo Silva has offered for the last year and a half. He is also ahead of Mahrez too. I expect he and KDB to be mint as double 10s.
 

TMDaines

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He may well have a good spell at City, but the transfer fee for him seems so ridiculous. There's an argument a player is worth what any club will pay for them, but I'd argue a better approximate of a player's value is what multiple clubs would pay for them.

Would anyone else have been agreeing to pay £90m for Grealish? What about £80m, £70m, or even £60m? There's been no strong interest from Chelsea, United, Liverpool or Spurs, and zero interest from abroad.
 

Redfrog

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I like Graelish a lot, but is “drawing fouls” really that significant of a selling point? It’s weird that that gets mentioned so much as some sort of defining characteristic.

Hazard used to draw a lot of fouls as well, and Ronaldo back when he was here, but no one ever really talked about that.
Because they did much more than that. This « he wins a lot of fouls » bullshit is only because his stats are not indicative of a great player.

He is obviously really nice to watch but the end product is not there.

I really don’t know how some are saying he is better then Bruno when the guy is ace and proving it every game by his input on the game not by playing nice…
 

Sweet Square

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I'm sure he will turn good at some point but I've always had the impression the transfer was more about marketing rather than improving this City team.
 

alexthelion

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I think he will change his style of play, he slowed down the attacks and you can see the difference when KdB had the ball. His first instinct is to create and he releases the ball quickly to keep the move going. Grealish will adapt to his new teammates, they all are good enough to create chances.
What's the point of buying him if he's got to change his style of play? Why not just buy a player like that in the first place?
 

predator

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I didn't watch them against Leicester but watched them against spurs tonight and he wasn't that bad or good.

I'm not his biggest fan, he's a great player but I'm happy with Sancho.

Let's just wait before jumping the gun.
 

Gringo

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He is streets ahead of what Bernardo Silva has offered for the last year and a half. He is also ahead of Mahrez too. I expect he and KDB to be mint as double 10s.
Isn't that down to Pep ? He was looking like the understudy to David Silva. Then gets pushed out wide to the wing and rotated, played out of form. Looks like the shadow of the player he was at Monaco and the first year at City.
 

Redfrog

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Pathetic post. Some Bosnian bloke on the internet is concluding stuff after 90 minutes of football I see, also from a game he was easily City’s best player on a bad day for most of them. A small advice, wait a few weeks and see what he offers them when he’s physically fit and up to speed, linking up with de Bruyne. What is also funny is that people think a player will not develop together with a new manager… this is Pep, not Ole Solskjær, Grealish will be fine.
Are you an United fan ? Don’t look like it… you should just write it on your profil…
 

Winzaghi

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Because they did much more than that. This « he wins a lot of fouls » bullshit is only because his stats are not indicative of a great player.

He is obviously really nice to watch but the end product is not there.

I really don’t know how some are saying he is better then Bruno when the guy is ace and proving it every game by his input on the game not by playing nice…
He was 4th in assists last season and 2nd for chances created while missing 11 games. The end product was most definitely there.

As @DWelbz19 said, the main question mark around him now is if he can replicate that while seeing much less of the ball and being expected to move it on quicker.
 

Sweet Square

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How doesn’t he have a tag line?
Bruno scored a hattrick. Well done, it's a good achievement, but his overall display wasn't amazing. Pogba, for instance, a much more influential display. Will not be at all surprised if Grealish has a stellar debut tomorrow in terms of performance, not just numbers.
And of course you can add Bruno into that equation, who will always pump up our goals+assists figures vs. the small opposition.
 

#07

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He’s just a staggeringly bizarre buy for city. I mean, Pep buys players for his system and always has done. They may flop, but you could never look at a pep buy and say you were struggling to understand the purpose behind the purchase.

So then he goes out and purchases an English show pony for an eye watering sum who provides absolutely nothing above and beyond the players he already has, and has nothing statistically exceptional to show for his performances by the grand old age of 25 to justify the £100m fee.

He’s inferior to Sterling as a left sided forward. He’s inferior to de bruyne as a creative midfielder. He’d be inferior to mahrez as a right sided forward. He’d be no better than Bernardo Silva as a right sided midfielder.

He’s not a false or a true 9, he’s not a defensive midfielder so can’t deputise for an ageing Fernandinho. So why was he bought, particularly when they’re playing a substandard Mendy at left back and Jesus/Torres as a striker?
It reminded me of when Pep's Barcelona bought Cesc. They had the most well oiled attacking unit in world football. However, Pep felt the need to try and change it to 'stay ahead.'

It's a product of the same paranoia that leads him to make baffling tactical decisions in knock out ties. He's so worried about not having something his opponent will be prepared for that he's gone for Grealish. Yet many aspects of Grealish's game just don't match Pep ball.
 

noodlehair

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I felt he got lost because he was literally fighting alone for ages up until KDB came on. City looked like they hadn't played a minute of pre season. It was very strange.
Yeah they reminded me of us against Palace last year. Just looked completely off the pace. I think they were lucky Spurs didn't look especially sharp themselves or it could have been embarrassing.

I don't really see where Grealish fits in at City. I'm not sure what he offers that they don't already have. Seems like more of a PR/marketing signing to me. Not that he isn't a very good player but they already have as good if not better in every role they could pick him in. If they miss out on a striker as a result of signing him then it'll be a bit of an own goal.

He did look more involved and at it than most of their players today but then it was his debut and to be honest it wasn't hard to do more than most of them.
 

redshaw

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Perhaps why they sanctioned such a move is partly becasue for whatever reason he's already a very popular player, you see it with the England fans as well. I think City owners will want their sort of Beckham to draw in the viewers and further change the image of the club and capture more minds. We see how image conscious City and PSG are.

I expect him to come good but for England and a lower club he can give you possession and control, something that England lacked and really needed at times in the Euros but was on the bench. He can be a focal point at a Villa but City are already in control in most games. I expect him to come good at City like how Pep can steer the play towards Sterling or Gundogan but we'll see. Like many have said he doesn't bring much extra to the team but he can do a similar job but be many more times popular doing it.
 

InfiniteBoredom

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nah, there was some semblance of a plan there - after what chelsea did to them in the CL, they needed an alternative route to goal.
buying that alternative for a record fee, selling your well-integrated main striker, and having the new guy compete with the GOAT for the same position - that was the less worked out part of the plan :lol:
I’m fairly sure Eto’o fell out with Guardiola, who then forced him out of the club, then Ibra came in and they didn’t take to each other, which started the Messi false 9 thing.

So it wasn’t as much a plan as baldy falling out with 2 big ego players.