The RJW63 Official Jack Grealish Appreciation Thread

[A'Villan]

2 hours ago, MrBlack said:

You are right about being fair to him, but you aren't being fair. You were being overly generous. As another poster pointed out,  their Mrs saw the attitude of Gareth change when he was asked about Jack. I was curious,  and asked my Mrs to watch the interview and ask her if anything stood out... she immediately said (having not seen the game) "did Jack not do very well?".

He is, either by design or accident, trying to play down Jack Grealish in every way he can.

Maybe he's bizarrely trying to protect him from the limelight until he unleashes him full force at the next tournament...

Maybe he takes exception to the fact Jack went out drinking and inhaling nitrous oxide as a teenager in the England setup. Who knows why, but he definitely has an aversion to recognising Jack's ability and performances. 

I don't particularly want to argue but I'll engage the discussion further.

I'm confident in my discernment of the situation regarding Southgate to the point where I'm happy to post on the forum that I think he's not snubbed Grealish in any way.

I'm flattered that you call my words overly generous but from where I sit it's just a fair call, I owe Southgate no special treatment, should he of been out of place, I'd say.

That's why I said to be fair to Southgate, because in my view, people on this forum are for whatever reason insinuating that Southgate didn't acknowledge Jack.

You could even go as far as to say that people are convinced that Southgate has it in for Jack. And that may well be the case, I'm not here to dispute that.

My point, to be fair to Southgate, is that during that interview, Southgate acknowledges the newcomers for their performance given new settings and unfamiliarity.

He then goes on to say that we know Grealish is a player who can attract fouls in advanced areas, and that he's good in tight spaces receiving and with it at his feet.

Excuse the paraphrasing job but I think it's at least the gist of Southgate's comments on Jack.

The only thing I'll say, is that he might've become a tiny little slither more awkward than he had been when asked about Jack.

And I would take that to mean that he's been caught with his pants down and doesn't want to pull them up just yet, because everyone can see why Jack should be in.

Southgate if he does or has had some issue with our Jacky boy may well be less inclined to select him, opting for any one of a number of talented options instead.

Just because Southgate wasn't willing to concede and say, yes, "Grealish has not only been knocking on the door, but running straight through the wall to get here."

Doesn't mean that his commentary in that post match interview were any way shape or form not giving Jack recognition for the match he had.

That's hopefully all I have to say on the matter but knowing me you'll get another essay so be warned! 

[romavillan]

The world is starting to take note:

https://www.ultimouomo.com/jack-graelish-culto-premier-league-aston-villa/

"Convert to the cult of Jack Grealish" it's a good article but it's in Italian  google translate it as I doubt I'm going to have time to translate all that any rime soon!

[Dave-R]

Fantastic to hear how Grealish got a man of match, as I missed the game because I forgot while I was playing fifa 21 with Grealish and Watkins new team of the week in my ultimate team side.

I hope this is excuse enough

[mottaloo]

On sha forum of the 54 posts for the game last night, 28 were about JG. Some of the comments were laughable, bitter as you'd expect. Hardly any mention of the game itself or other players, Coady and Calvert Lewin excepted.

Edited October 9, 2020 by mottaloo

[Thug]

5 minutes ago, mottaloo said:

On sha forum of the 54 posts for the game last night, 28 were about JG. Some of the comments were laughable, bitter as you'd expect. Hardly any mention of the game itself or other players, Coady and Calvert Lewin excepted.

I hope you showered before you came back on here..

[Awol]

7 hours ago, Phil Silvers said:

said in another post go with.....

              Kane

Sterling Jack  Rashford

and mould everything around that, maybe go Barkley and one from Phillips, Winks and Rice for me, would be more attach focused. 

Rice and Philips behind as a double pivot. Would prefer Dougie & SJM in there but those two will do.. 

Also, Philips. What a miss he was last year. 

[7392craig]

21 minutes ago, Thug said:

I hope you disinfected before you came back on here..

FTFY

[a-k]

When asked about Jack...

"Sancho and Raheem have the ability to dribble and beat people but he does it in a different way"

"The area he got into for the goal that he created is where he should aim to be more and more regularly" (as if Jack doesn't want to be in those positions)

"He's good at receiving deep" (Kenneth Williams gif)

"He's a different type erm [starts scratching back], Mount coming on in that position or similar position again I thought had an excellent impact on the game he presses so well he moves the ball so quickly and he had a real impact in setting up 2 or 3 chances in an immediate impact on the game"

 

You might think I'm trolling with that last one, but no, he actually said that.

 

 

[YouUnastanFren]

9 minutes ago, a-k said:

When asked about Jack...

Mount coming on in that position or similar position again I thought had an excellent impact on the game he presses so well he moves the ball so quickly and he had a real impact in setting up 2 or 3 chances in an immediate impact on the game"

 

You might think I'm trolling with that last one, but no, he actually said that.

 

 

Am I misremembering or is the only chance Mount created the one where Grealish drew in the defenders (and drew a foul) before playing Mount in to roll an easy ball left into loads of space for AMN?

[a-k]

4 minutes ago, YouUnastanFren said:

Am I misremembering or is the only chance Mount created the one where Grealish drew in the defenders (and drew a foul) before playing Mount in to roll an easy ball left into loads of space for AMN?

I didn't watch the match...point was the best he could say about the MOTM was that he's a different type of player and he's pleased with him, then on his own accord changes the narrative and tone to continue his wankfest of compliments for Mount. Word removed.

Edited October 9, 2020 by a-k

[Frobisher]

 

15 minutes ago, a-k said:

When asked about Jack...

"Sancho and Raheem have the ability to dribble and beat people but he does it in a different way"

"The area he got into for the goal that he created is where he should aim to be more and more regularly" (as if Jack doesn't want to be in those positions)

"He's good at receiving deep" (Kenneth Williams gif)

"He's a different type erm [starts scratching back], Mount coming on in that position or similar position again I thought had an excellent impact on the game he presses so well he moves the ball so quickly and he had a real impact in setting up 2 or 3 chances in an immediate impact on the game"

 

You might think I'm trolling with that last one, but no, he actually said that.

 

 

What’s wrong with him?! Mount did look pretty sharp when he came on against a dispirited Wales who were 3-0 down and ready for bed. But Wales didn’t start out like that. They were up for it and were in the game. Grealish, with that assist, was the one who broke their spirits. So strange to not see it recognised.

Edited October 9, 2020 by Frobisher
Typo

[Loxstock92]

25 minutes ago, a-k said:

When asked about Jack...

"Sancho and Raheem have the ability to dribble and beat people but he does it in a different way"

"The area he got into for the goal that he created is where he should aim to be more and more regularly" (as if Jack doesn't want to be in those positions)

"He's good at receiving deep" (Kenneth Williams gif)

"He's a different type erm [starts scratching back], Mount coming on in that position or similar position again I thought had an excellent impact on the game he presses so well he moves the ball so quickly and he had a real impact in setting up 2 or 3 chances in an immediate impact on the game"

 

You might think I'm trolling with that last one, but no, he actually said that.

 

 

Can’t take him seriously. Grade A tool.

[Nigel]

Quote

One start. That is all Jack Grealish ever wanted for England. He knew that if he got it, he would be able to show the whole country what he could do. Grealish has always played like a man who knows how good he is. But that charisma is what makes him so enthralling. It was impossible to take your eyes off Grealish last night. And why would he be self-effacing about it when he can play like this?

This was the performance fans had been waiting for, ever since Grealish declared for England five years ago. It was a reminder of what a special player he is, but if you have watched him at all for Aston Villa recently then you would know that already. But it was also a reminder of how, in an international game that is more often flatter, slower and less entertaining than the Premier League, a player like Grealish can make all the difference. It made you wonder how on earth England had thought they could do without him for so long.

Because this game was going absolutely nowhere for the first 25 minutes. Wales were on top and Grealish, stationed in an inside-left position, had barely touched the ball. Something needed to change. So Grealish drifted out to the right for the first time, got on the ball, skipped his way past Ethan Ampadu and clipped a perfect cross onto the forehead of Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Southgate said it was precisely the sort of final third position he wants Grealish to take up more often, where he can hurt opposition the most.

And from that point on, he was the best player on the pitch by a distance. Grealish has an uncanny ability to drift past opponents, a natural strength and balance that makes everything he does look blissfully easy. It did not take him long to embarrass so many Wales players that they resorted to kicking him. That did not work either, as one free-kick he won on the right saw Kieran Trippier set up a goal for Conor Coady.

Just before Grealish was taken off it felt like we were watching variations on the same sequence over and over again. Brilliant skill, bad foul, Grealish jumps back up, demands the ball, and it all starts again.

After Grealish’s debut in Copenhagen last month, Southgate was cautious with his praise, but not this time. “He is a different player to probably any that we have,” he said. “Sancho and Raheem Sterling have the ability to dribble and beat people, but he does it in a different way.” And that difference, however you want to define it, that intuition, that sparkle, that natural grace, is what makes Grealish such a thrilling addition to this England squad less than one year before the Euros.

Because for all their improvements under Southgate, at times England can still look formulaic in their play. They score plenty of goals from set-pieces and penalties, and while there is nothing wrong with that, they can look short of ideas in open play. (Remember they only scored one open play goal in three knock-out games at the 2018 World Cup — Dele Alli’s header against Sweden in Samara).

England have improved since then, as Southgate moved towards a 4-3-3. Their 3-2 win in Seville in October 2018 was the creative peak of this side, as Harry Kane dropped into a deeper role and fed forward passes to Sterling and Marcus Rashford with devastating effect. It was a brilliant surprise tactic, but it was also two years ago, and no-one is going to be surprised by it again next summer. Especially when Kane now plays that way for Tottenham every week.

In the unequal world of modern international football, there are worse things to be than formulaic. England’s formula is extremely good at creating chances against lesser teams. They scored 37 goals in eight Euro 2020 qualifiers, the best rate in Europe, scoring three fives, one six and one seven. But teams know, more or less, how they are going to attack. Kane will come short to get on the ball. Sterling, Rashford or Jadon Sancho will run in behind. Trent Alexander-Arnold will push all the way up. The midfield are busy, but they are not exactly painting pictures.

This matters because the real test of this England team will not be in games like this. We know they can score goals against Kosovo, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. The test will be against Belgium and Denmark later this week, and Belgium again and Iceland next month. England played two games against Belgium in the last World Cup, and drew a blank both times. Now would be a good moment to show they have improved.

Even more important will be at the Euros which, on current plans, are still taking place in June and July next year. England will face plenty of questions but here is one of them: can they create chances against good defences? If they face France or Germany or Portugal in the last 16 in Dublin, will they be able to pick them apart? These are not teams who would willingly let Kane and Sterling pull them apart. Just remember the defensive organisation that France showed in Russia, shutting down Uruguay and Belgium in the quarter and semi-finals.

That is why it feels, watching England, like they need an injection of something different if they are going to get to be able to hurt top opposition. There is little chance, given the constraints of the calendar, for Southgate to coach some higher level of coordination into these players in time for the Euros. This is a three-game break, November is a three-game break, then there is only the March break before the end of the season. England are not going to show up at Wembley on 13 June next year and start playing like Bayern Munich.

But as Grealish thumpingly proved here on Thursday night, he can give them something different. Something no other English players and very few from other countries currently have. And that is a gift that is not honed or coached or found in a textbook. Grealish is not a product of any philosophy or a cog in anyone else’s machine. Dean Smith has been good for Grealish, but he is Grealish’s seventh Aston Villa manager, and things would not be very different under an eighth or a ninth.

What Grealish has is individualistic magic, the capacity to make something happen by himself, almost regardless of the contexts of the gameplan or his team-mates or his opponents. That’s why he is not a player who needs to move to a top team to show how good he is. Even at Aston Villa, who only just survived relegation last season, he has proven he is one of the most exciting English players of his generation.

England have plenty of very good attacking players to use at the Euros next year. The credentials of Kane, Sterling and Rashford do not need to be listed again here. But, as Southgate admitted afterwards, they do not have anyone else quite like Grealish, a man who can turn a game with a shimmy or a flick of his boot. Watching him here at Wembley, dancing past opponents, two thoughts stood out: how much England need Grealish next summer, and how did they ever think otherwise?

Athletic

 

[KenjiOgiwara]

Think he's value have gone up from £80 to £120-130 million now. 

Personally I'd not sell at any price. This is the type of footballer you hope to get at any club. When you spend £40-50 million you hope you end up with someone half as good. He's a fecking unicorn. 

Edited October 9, 2020 by KenjiOgiwara

[Nigel]

I hope that clause is pretty damn high!

[Awol]

2 hours ago, romavillan said:

The world is starting to take note:

https://www.ultimouomo.com/jack-graelish-culto-premier-league-aston-villa/

"Convert to the cult of Jack Grealish" it's a good article but it's in Italian  google translate it as I doubt I'm going to have time to translate all that any rime soon!

Worth doing though, one of best write ups on Jack I’ve read. Is all Italian football journalism that incisive?! 

[Delphinho123]

Still talking about Mount. Still had to mention others. He’s just teeing up dropping Grealish when they return. 

[sidcow]

8 hours ago, DJ_Villain said:

I distinctly remember someone making a comment on this forum about Southgate probably being bitter and twisted from his playing days of him being the model professional and a bloody good player in his own right, but the flash lads getting all the limelight and adoration and him thinking "When I manage England, there will be none of this"

Someone did say something like that didnt they? or was I dreaming it?

Yes, was me.  Just a musing though, no evidence of this. 

[KenjiOgiwara]

2 hours ago, romavillan said:

The world is starting to take note:

https://www.ultimouomo.com/jack-graelish-culto-premier-league-aston-villa/

"Convert to the cult of Jack Grealish" it's a good article but it's in Italian  google translate it as I doubt I'm going to have time to translate all that any rime soon!

That was fun. I really liked the video with Joe Cole in there too. 

[KenjiOgiwara]

12 minutes ago, Awol said:

Worth doing though, one of best write ups on Jack I’ve read. Is all Italian football journalism that incisive?! 

You have to understand that football in Italy is not like England or the rest of Europe. It's religious. They go OTT with everything, good and bad.