Jack Grealish is delighted that the Paul Gascoigne comparisons keep coming back after dazzling on his first start in England on Thursday night.
The Aston Villa midfielder was England’s standout in their 3-0 win over Wales at Wembley. He got a template and looked like the most creative player on the pitch.
Grealish’s style of play and the way he stands up to rugged challenges have brought comparisons between him and a top-notch Gascoigne, and the 25-year-old counts him as his favorite footballer.
Grealish has something of the flair of Paul Gascoigne
“I know about Gazza,” he said. “I don’t really see myself as him, but I would like to be like him, the way he played football.
“He’s been so … I don’t know what the right word is – but he enjoyed playing football so much. I think anyone who’s watched him could see that. That’s what I want to do.
“One of the biggest compliments to people is that you make them happy to watch football.
“My old coaches told me that. I already got a nice message from one of my old coaches. When they were training me at nine and ten it was tremendous for them to see me start for England.
“It’s massive for me and my family, but I’m proud of my old coach.
“I’d like to be compared to Gazza. I think he’s an absolute icon. He was probably one of the greatest English players with Wayne Rooney in the last 30 years.
“There was a load, but if they were the first two, Gazza would be my first.”
Grealish took advantage of the opportunity Southgate offered him
Grealish had to wait a long time to get his chance at England but he will be in the squad for some time after the evidence against Wales.
It wasn’t a smooth trip, however, for Grealish, who was sent home from a boys’ camp in England after his breakdown and then played for the Republic of Ireland in his youth.
But after he finally makes it to Gareth Southgate’s first team, he won’t let it.
Sunday, October 11th, 4:00 p.m.
Start at 5:00 p.m.
“I can’t remember too much, I don’t know what was going on,” he said of the incident as a teenager. “I was a young guy who wanted to meet the best England players around the country and it was a huge difference from what I was used to.
“When I got there, I woke up in the middle of the night, went to the bathroom and then my roommate, Diego Poyet, Gus Poyet’s son, heard a bang and then I just woke up to the bathroom.
“I had obviously collapsed. I didn’t want to go home the next day but England said they thought it was the best thing I did.
“From then on I played for Ireland in my youth and played for them because I liked it a lot. As I got older I realized that I am English, my family is English and in the future it will be what I am.” want to do.
“I want to play for England and I’m just so grateful and grateful to the manager that he made it.
“And I want to be in the squad for the next time, no matter how long it takes – five, six years – and I want to have a long career in England and play a lot of international matches.”
Can Grealish bring the X factor to Gareth Southgate’s English team?
Southgate described the mansion man as a “matador” with the ball but is concerned about the kicks he is receiving from opposing defenders.
“Well, you know he’ll do it because he does it for his club and I haven’t seen him lose the ball too often in situations like this,” Southgate said.
“He’s a matador in situations like this, isn’t he? The only thing that occasionally worries me is that if he holds on to the ball he becomes constipated and you don’t want him to have injured himself during the game.
“I know he’s the most fouled player in the league and he’s taking those fouls, but I was a bit scared he’d get kicked and get into trouble.”
“No, in those deeper areas he’s confident enough to play and you don’t think he’s the type of player who is going to lose the ball in this situation.”
“An” X-Factor “player with socks down, shin guards for children and a big Brummie accent”
Sky Sports News reporter Rob Dorsett analyzes whether this is a breakthrough on the international scene for the Aston Villa captain.
Aston Villa fans have long berated their former favorite, Gareth Southgate, for overlooking the club’s current darling. But in Wembley against Wales, Jack Grealish finally got his first start in England. And it bloomed.
For the past 18 months it has been clear that the English coach doesn’t think Grealish is an exact fit for the way he wants his team to play. The pace and direct run of Sterling, Rashford and Sancho as they stand behind an opponent’s defense is much more in keeping with the Southgate game plan.
Grealish is different. A mystery. An “X-Factor” player with socks down, kids’ shin guards and a big brummie accent – a one-of-a-kind, individual player who more closely resembles the unpredictable Paul Gascoigne flair with which Southgate had such a productive time playing England in the late 1990s.
And its worth was visible to all on Thursday night at Wembley.
It was Grealish’s deceit that gave Dominic Calvert-Lewin his first international goal on a plate.
It was Grealish’s trick that won the free kick that Conor Coady used to score his first international goal.
And in a dreary first half hour it just looked like England was creating something when Grealish was on the ball.
Most experts had him a mile as their man of the game. Southgate said he was happy for him but also had words of caution. He couldn’t bring himself to praise Villa’s captain too much.
Compare what he told me about Dominic Calvert-Lewin after the game on the sidelines of the Wembley field with what he said about Grealish – both made their first start in England.
It took Dominic Calvert-Lewin just 26 minutes from his debut in England to score his first international goal and 10th goal of the season
On Calvert-Lewin:
“His all-round play was excellent. His presence, his hold-up play, his pressure. I think he won every header that was played to him. And of course the goal for every center forward is what makes your night.”
On Grealish:
“It was a nice cross for the goal. He has a creative brain. I think sometimes he can do better at this job because you want him there. He’s so dangerous there.”
“I keep telling him that these are the areas of the game where he can make a difference and he did that tonight. I’m very happy for him.”
Pleased “for” him. Not happy “with” him. Semantics? Perhaps.
But it is clear that Southgate believes that Grealish is not the finished item, that he still has areas of his game to improve on.
In contrast, former England manager Steve McClaren told Sky Sports News on Friday:
“England have to find a way to get him (Grealish) on. He’s what England have missed. It’s difficult to build a team around him internationally but when he started (against Wales) too streak, it caused so many problems. “
Back to the game. At Wembley there was another litany of fouls against Grealish. He was the most fouled player in the Premier League last season.
His critics say he goes down too easily or gets fouled so often for not releasing the passport fast enough. But in the international football arena – even more so than in the Premier League – free kicks in and around the opponent’s penalty area can change the game.
As we saw against Wales, with Kieran Trippier’s brilliant free kick (won by Grealish) that found Conor Coady on the back post and almost killed the game as a competition.
A foul on Grealish resulted in England’s second goal, scored by Conor Coady
While Villa’s fans have been loud on social media, berating Southgate and speaking out in favor of Grealish’s inclusion, there is confusion in the corridors and offices of Villa Park about what else the club’s captain can do to become a regular in England.
Let’s face it – against Wales, Grealish shone as puppet master for England’s second string. Southgate kept its powder dry and its big guns ready for Sunday’s Nations League Battle Royale with Belgium.
Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford will both return against Belgium
Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford – both rested against Wales – will certainly start on Sunday.
With Sterling absent due to injury, and Sancho lacking in both match fitness and his manager’s favor, Grealish was able to get a starting spot on the left against the FIFA number one team.
And when he delivers a similar performance against the world’s best opposition as he did on Thursday evening, it becomes increasingly difficult for England’s managers to justify Jack Grealish’s no longer at the start in the future.
