Jack Grealish has described his season at Manchester City as “difficult” due to injuries and fluctuating form, admitting that he has struggled to build confidence.
The 28-year-old has suffered a number of injuries in the current campaign. He had an extreme case of a dead leg that kept him out for over three weeks in August, which he said made him unable to walk. Grealish also picked up a groin injury in City’s 3-1 Champions League round-of-16 first-leg victory over Copenhagen, but suffered a recurrence of the issue in the 6-2 FA Cup win against Luton Town in February.
Despite problems with his fitness, the England international says he now feels in good shape physically and mentally.
He said: “It’s been difficult (this season). Especially on the back of last year, I had such a good season. I was playing a lot and was one of the main players in the team and playing in all the important games.
“This year at the start of the season I had a dead leg which kept me out for a month and then I didn’t play too often. I don’t think my form was the best and I wasn’t playing with a lot of confidence. In the new year, I had a few injuries again as well with my groin.
“Recently, obviously I haven’t scored yet, but I feel good, I feel fit and I feel like I’m playing with good confidence. Hopefully, I can bring that into the end of the season.”
Grealish has struggled for form this season at City (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Pressed on what the loss of confidence was down to, he added: “I don’t know. I just think sometimes if you’re not playing and probably not up to it in training, in your own head you just don’t feel confident.
“It’s not even about scoring and assisting. Now, I feel confident even though I’ve not scored. I got an assist last week at the Bernabeu (against Real Madrid) but I’ve said before that nowadays everyone loves to talk about goals and assists.
“It’s annoying the way the game has gone because you can have a brilliant game and not get a goal or an assist and they say ‘ah, he didn’t do this or that’. And then you can score two tap-ins at the back post and not play well at all and everyone’s like ‘ah, he’s brilliant’.
“At the moment, I feel good and I feel confident. At the start of the season, I just didn’t feel like I was playing well really. I didn’t really feel that fit if I’m honest. Coming in the team, playing a game, then being out of the team, in and out, it was a little bit difficult but I feel good now.”
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Manchester City would be better with Jack Grealish’s control
Grealish has played 32 games in all competitions for City this season, scoring three and assisting the same amount. In 2022-23, he played an influential role in helping his side lift a historic treble, contributing five goals and 11 assists.
His best season in the top flight, however, came at former club Aston Villa when he scored 10 goals and assisted on eight occasions in 2019-20. However, he insists his focus is on winning trophies and believes his contribution extends beyond goals and assists.
“For me, it’s all about playing and winning stuff,” he said. “Last season, for example, I played a lot of games but I think I only got five goals and 11 assists. It’s not loads, but I played such a big part in it.
“I’ve had times when I was at Villa when I’ve got more goals and more assists but I didn’t win anything. What season do I look back on and think, ‘yeah, that was successful?’ It’s last season.
“When I’m playing and in a rhythm and I feel important to the team and we’re winning stuff, that’s when it matters and that’s what you look back on.”
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Real Madrid remind the world that not even Manchester City are perfect
(Stu Forster/Getty Images)
