The RJW63 Official Jack Grealish Appreciation Thread

[abdulaziz1]

1 hour ago, DevonIsAPlaceOnEarth said:

It’s an opinion piece so Preece is well within his rights to say what he has.

To be honest I feel the same,  Jack has not shown Villa much respect from the moment he left. And as the club have intimated, he’s pushed for a move subtly for years. Remember he removed villa from his social media within hours of his move. Probably his PR agents, but the fact stands he talks about us like some terrible ex. Sick of his nonsense to be honest.

To be honest he still follows Villa in his social media. 
I think what @danceoftheshamen saying is right.

[CVByrne]

4 minutes ago, Wainy316 said:

 

 

Well said Jack. I'm amazed people are still hung up on Jack Grealish!! He's gave us half his career and left for a ridiculous fee. Why can't people just move on, he's only one player in a club sport

[rodders0223]

6 minutes ago, Wainy316 said:

 

I'm sure Jack could have managed to write that tbfh. I know they have teams but come on this is getting silly now with the snide comments 

[abdulaziz1]

2 hours ago, VillaFaninLondon said:

His interview is so lacking in emotion when he talks about Villa it is really hard to believe he's supported Villa all his life. 

 

He put out a very poor social media post the day he left which said nothing of note and didn't even bother to explain his actions.

 

The sad thing is he thinks he's better than the club but up until the age of 22 he was a liability.

 

He can blame the demise of the club for playing a part in that but there's no escaping he was an immature underachiever until the second half of the 17/18 season where after that freak injury he suddenly started to play football at a decent level.

 

Grealish became a great player eventually for us but Chuk for me is showing more ability/potential than Grealish at the same age and with the maturity to boot.

He’s now a player of another club, how can express his emotions to Villa all the time? Add to that the fact that he did the hard decision, he can’t even look at the down side of it. 
I don’t think Jack was lying, but sometimes as life goes on people start consider things they didn’t, wether that’s because of opportunities came up, or them going into new societies which make them consider what they didn’t (such as Jack going with those England team players)....etc

You could see Jack being happy last season. But when things started getting bad, he seemed fed up, he clearly wanted a quick progress. England was one of the most important reasons for that.

[rodders0223]

What exactly do people want? To see Jack cry? To gush over Villa every interview?

 

He's moved on. He's with someone else. He's not going to text you. He's not going to write. He isn't stalking your social media. He's happy with someone else. That's life.

[Dave-R]

4 minutes ago, Wainy316 said:

 

Thing is Jack you kind of proved him right the moment you traded in all you said to Villa fans for a Blue shirt and a fortune. Money and medals you traded in your Villa shirt for, I'd say that classless. Arrogance was you trying to look for the exit and talking about it all while reassuring fans by signing new contracts. Jealous I can believe that, if other top names were getting international action, trophies and so on and you wernt getting it as fast as you thought you should be getting it.

Really wished we could just be done with Jack but this shit keeps popping up like a bad piece of fish that went off in your home that can't be found. Jack himself can't seem to bloody move on and neither can Villa fans. Jack seems to feel the need to Express that he's this Villa fan who was devoted to the club. I don't know but it's like when someone like Ashley says these thing he can't stand for anyone to think bad about him or be pelted with bad news on him knowing really he brought it all on himself.

[Beastmix]

9 minutes ago, CVByrne said:

1. 'when he see's players like Mbappe, Sancho, Haaland etc.. all getting their huge moves and starring in CL'

2. 'He then outgrew the club and moved on'

3. 'wonder what they seem to have invested in'

4. 'To see a supposed Journalist have a rant like that article. It is embarrassing. '

 

1. It's a shame he wasn't mentally strong enough not to be jealous of his peers playing in the Champions League.

2. He didn't 'outgrow the club' because nobody is bigger than the club.

3. They invested in the dream of being a fan and captaining the club you support. Ask most Villa fans if, in the same situation, they would trade this for anything else in football (such as playing in the Champions League for a different club in the same league) and they'd likely tell you where to go.

4. It's an opinion piece... the key word there being opinion.

 

Personally, I understand the emotions of Preece's opinion piece, but I'm equally I'm happy with the £100m and what we've done with it. We're no longer a team that needs to rely on Grealish and we are more balanced as a result. It's just a shame he doesn't show us any respect now he's left, especially considering he's a supposed fan.

[PaulC]

Personally think Grealish did  nothing wrong.  He gave his all for the club everytime he turned out. It was the right time for him to move.  We got £100 million for him. Theres no point being bitter about it. 

[est1874]

Preece is entitled to his opinion

Personally I think the Birmingham Meaning Evil is essentially a tabloid so why a highly-paid professional is paying attention to it is beyond me, but Jack is also entitled to clap back if he likes

We are all entitled to side with either

Personally I think Gresford is as thick as two short planks and I think Preece has a point, which he was asked to make and has now made.

[Keyblade]

I really don't understand the people who are trying to wave away some fans' frustrations with Jack by explaining why he left or why he said he signed his contract because he believed in the owners etc. I think everybody understands why he did it. It's like explaining during goal celebrations "well the reason Villa scored here is because the ball traveled into the net at a velocity that was well beyond what the keeper could reasonably react to". Yes I know this, but I'm celebrating because my tribe got an advantage over another not because the ball literally went into the net.

Just like with Grealish, you can understand why he did from a business perspective. It's sound. But I'm not a businessman, I'm a football fan, and lying to the fans about why you stayed while secretly engineering a move away is betrayal in football terms, and I don't begrudge fans for holding it against him. What I don't condone is people essentially turning into SHA and Leeds fans and mocking him at every turn about his hair or appearance, lifestyle, diving etc. As well as definitely the people who occasionally wish injury on him.

[Dave-R]

5 minutes ago, Beastmix said:

1. It's a shame he wasn't mentally strong enough not to be jealous of his peers playing in the Champions League.

2. He didn't 'outgrow the club' because nobody is bigger than the club.

3. They invested in the dream of being a fan and captaining the club you support. Ask most Villa fans if, in the same situation, they would trade this for anything else in football (such as playing in the Champions League for a different club in the same league) and they'd likely tell you where to go.

4. It's an opinion piece... the key word there being opinion.

 

Personally, I understand the emotions of Preece's opinion piece, but I'm equally I'm happy with the £100m and what we've done with it. We're no longer a team that needs to rely on Grealish and we are more balanced as a result. It's just a shame he doesn't show us any respect now he's left, especially considering he's a supposed fan.

I'm happy with the 100 mill also, I mean who wants a sellout at the club,100 million trade sound like a god damn bargain for us when you trade a traitor.

Good business really, I mean for all we know with his injury he had it could resurface anytime and make his career shorter, best to sell while we could of.

We have plenty to look forward to at villa,it was only in our survival season, first season back in the prem we were all moaning our youth went good enough. Now look at the Youth doing there hardest to break in to the first team and we have so many who are kicking ass. Wasn't all to long ago we were even trash talking our fringe stars and while some may need moving on still for a while I feel even they are putting in decent performances some of them. Then theres our first team and subs bench, it's looking so much more healthier than what it did do a season or two ago..

This season may see us not do as good as last with crowds back and home advantage back, but at least we will learn to play as a unit and not be in a situation where the Villa team is relying on just one player. I just think we have to be prepared for abit of a setback season and a season where anything can happen. 

[DJ_Villain]

6 minutes ago, PaulC said:

Personally think Grealish did  nothing wrong.  He gave his all for the club everytime he turned out. It was the right time for him to move.  We got £100 million for him. Theres no point being bitter about it. 

What?
Insisting on a clause in his contract and giving it the loyalty spiel THEN having his agent tell the only club on the planet who could possibly afford to meet that clause all of the tiny details and hoops that needed jumping through in order to secure his move isn’t doing anything wrong?

I think it’s **** shifty if you ask me

[villa4europe]

2 minutes ago, DJ_Villain said:

What?
Insisting on a clause in his contract and giving it the loyalty spiel THEN having his agent tell the only club on the planet who could possibly afford to meet that clause all of the tiny details and hoops that needed jumping through in order to secure his move isn’t doing anything wrong?

I think it’s **** shifty if you ask me

its football if you ask me

[sharkyvilla]

8 minutes ago, Keyblade said:

I really don't understand the people who are trying to wave away some fans' frustrations with Jack by explaining why he left or why he said he signed his contract because he believed in the owners etc. I think everybody understands why he did it. It's like explaining during goal celebrations "well the reason Villa scored here is because the ball traveled into the net at a velocity that was well beyond what the keeper could reasonably react to". Yes I know this, but I'm celebrating because my tribe got an advantage over another not because the ball literally went into the net.

Just like with Grealish, you can understand why he did from a business perspective. It's sound. But I'm not a businessman, I'm a football fan, and lying to the fans about why you stayed while secretly engineering a move away is betrayal in football terms, and I don't begrudge fans for holding it against him. What I don't condone is people essentially turning into SHA and Leeds fans and mocking him at every turn about his hair or appearance, lifestyle, diving etc. As well as definitely the people who occasionally wish injury on him.

Let's face it, there must be a significant proportion of our fans that are from the same gene pool as SHA fans.  You can see it everywhere, not just when talking about Jack.

[birdman]

2 minutes ago, DJ_Villain said:

What?
Insisting on a clause in his contract and giving it the loyalty spiel THEN having his agent tell the only club on the planet who could possibly afford to meet that clause all of the tiny details and hoops that needed jumping through in order to secure his move isn’t doing anything wrong?

I think it’s **** shifty if you ask me

Of course this is the crux of the problem but I wonder how we as fans would have reacted had he actually said, look I'm signing a new contract as I love playing for Villa but just so you know I'm looking for Champions League football as soon as possible. I want to be the best I can be, play with the best players and win things now not years down the line.

Such brutal honesty would have caused all sorts of problems! What words would you have him say? 

Personally I felt misled by the whole believing in the project thing. I honestly thought he would give us another season but of course, there was a release fee and he wanted to take his opportunity. Yeah its a bit hurty but forgive and forget I say. He ensured we got 100m by signing that contract. 

[CarryOnVilla]

It's strange that Grealish is rattled enough by Preece's  article that he tries a clap back on Twitter.

I would of thought the opinions of Preece and the Birmingham Mail are too small time for Grealish to give a shit about now. Even in the terms of perception, Villa fans don't give that much of a shit about BM to normally care.

Yet, something about the article spooked Jack... Either the article is blatant lies, what is public knowledge that BM are keen on telling, enough forJack not to care. or the article is saying some harsh truths, what Jack is trying to cover up in his response...

If it were a reporter or paper with a bigger reputation, I'd get the need for a response. But Ashley Preece? come onnn, that's like using a bazooka to swat a fly 

Edited September 3, 2021 by CarryOnVilla

[jim]

59 minutes ago, CVByrne said:

 

Well said Jack. I'm amazed people are still hung up on Jack Grealish!! He's gave us half his career and left for a ridiculous fee. Why can't people just move on, he's only one player in a club sport

bEcAusE He sAiD mY CLuB!

A few of us on here saw that as marketing fluff but some saw it as some sort of undying commitment to the club. Conveniently forgetting or choosing to ignore he had angled for a move twice before. Moral of the story, don't believe a word of what comes out of a footballers mouth.

Yes he signed a contract but it also ensured we got an insane amount of money if he was to leave.

Did nothing wrong IMO and some people just need to let it go and move on because frankly some of the posts in here are embarrassing. 

[wict01]

As much as I understand why some people are frustrated at others for being seemingly so hung up on Grealish's words from last year, I have to say I've found the takes and behaviour from other football journalists to be quite distasteful as well. As much as Preece's piece is divisive, it is definitely honest and heartfelt from the point of view of a villa fan, whether you agree with his stance or not. 

What I am finding more irritating than Preece's honesty is the sneering condescension of City journalists in particular who feel the need to tell Villa fans that they're overreacting and should get over it. Easy to say when you're the beneficiary of such a transfer. That's doing just as much to wind people up as Grealish's own comments and interviews, in my opinion. To say that Villa fans should be eternally grateful for Grealish's, if we're honest, fairly meagre achievements at the club both does a disservice to everyone else who has played a role in re-establishing us in the prem (NSWE, other players, Deano, etc) and pedals the notion that we should be happy for Grealish to get his "big move". I'm not happy for Grealish, I'm not a Grealish fan. I'm a Villa fan, I want Villa to win things and we arguably stood a better chance of that by keeping him, so naturally it is disappointing to see him go. I really hope we as a club can eventually throw it back in the faces of everyone who is determined to cast us in the role of a perpetual also-ran. Fans are allowed to have ambition as well, not just players. 

Rant over.......

[villalad21]

7 minutes ago, jim said:

bEcAusE He sAiD mY CLuB!

A few of us on here saw that as marketing fluff but some saw it as some sort of undying commitment to the club. Conveniently forgetting or choosing to ignore he had angled for a move twice before. Moral of the story, don't believe a word of what comes out of a footballers mouth.

Yes he signed a contract but it also ensured we got an insane amount of money if he was to leave.

Did nothing wrong IMO and some people just need to let it go and move on because frankly some of the posts in here are embarrassing. 

It's no so much that he wanted to leave.

More that he had to leave if he were to fulfill his Champions League and England ambitions.

Gave it a good go with us after the Championship for 2 seasons in the Prem. But ultimately it was evident we are absolute miles away from top 4 so it was realistically never gonna happen at Villa.

The complete bottle job second half of the season and seeing how useless we were when he was injured was probably the final nail in the coffin for him.

But we move on. Let's see if Bailey and Buendia can replace his output.

[KentVillan]

46 minutes ago, jim said:

bEcAusE He sAiD mY CLuB!

A few of us on here saw that as marketing fluff but some saw it as some sort of undying commitment to the club. Conveniently forgetting or choosing to ignore he had angled for a move twice before. Moral of the story, don't believe a word of what comes out of a footballers mouth.

Yes he signed a contract but it also ensured we got an insane amount of money if he was to leave.

Did nothing wrong IMO and some people just need to let it go and move on because frankly some of the posts in here are embarrassing. 

Yeah I mostly agree, although I think he could have handled it a little bit better on the way out. In his interviews, his face always changed when he did the old "obviously growing up here, obviously being from Birmingham, obviously yeah it means more to me, obviously".

Personally I thought he was going to stay because nobody would want to meet our valuation, but the £100m release clause came as a bit of a surprise (would he have gone if it was £150m?)

Reality is I think he does actually care about Villa and his Villa legacy, but is too proud to give any ground now.

We've done okay out of him, definitely time to move on and grow up. We'll have new homegrown heroes before long, the youth setup is quality.