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Jack Grealish finally scored his first goal in the Premier League in over 16 months as Manchester City beat Leicester City 2-0.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Grealish has struggled to feature in the Premier League this season, having lost his starting position to Savinho and Doku. However, he was handed a rare start on Wednesday and repaid Guardiola’s faith by breaking the deadlock just two minutes into the match. Grealish scored from Savinho’s precise cross, marking his first Premier League goal since December 2023.
Omar Marmoush added a second shortly before the half-hour mark to seal a simple win for City, who remain fourth and are six points behind third-placed Nottingham Forest. Marmoush capitalized on a mistake by Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen to double the lead.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Grealish’s goal marked the end of a long drought for the City winger, whose last league goal came 16 months ago. During this period, his future at the club was uncertain, following harsh criticism from Pep Guardiola after a poor performance in the Manchester derby in December 2023, where he was substituted within 30 minutes. However, Grealish’s performance on Wednesday suggests he has regained Guardiola’s trust, making his 13th Premier League start of the season.
WHAT JACK GREALISH SAID
Speaking after the game, he told TNT Sports: “[It’s a relief] for everyone. For me personally. There’s people behind the scenes that we work hard with every day, and they’ve been helping me so much. I am so thankful to the manager for sticking with me. We lost a player so early so he could have brought me off again after we scored. But he let me keep playing. I am just thankful to Pep for sticking by me.”
Addressing Guardiola’s faith in him, he replied: “That’s football. That’s life, I think. You have ups and downs. Last December 2023, I had it quite bad, but that’s football. He has stuck with me, and I am thankful for that.”
Grealish also dedicated his goal to his late brother Keelan, who passed away 25 years ago on the same day. “This day is always hard in the family, but I was happy to score. My mum and dad were here. This day is always difficult in the family. So to score and to win was brilliant,” he said.
WHAT NEXT FOR MANCHESTER CITY?
City next have a huge game as the Manchester derby against United awaits them at Old Trafford on Saturday. They will aim to avenge their 2-1 loss to United earlier this season. They will try to reduce the distance to 3rd place Nottingham and try to salvage the season, as they are out of the Champions League and the title race on the Premier League.
