da pixbet： The midfielder has lagged behind his competitors and is in danger of wasting the best days of his career like Paul Gascoigne did

da apostebet： Jack Grealish must have thought he had done enough to get in England's Euro 2024 squad. Despite a frustrating, injury-interrupted season, he showed his ability to make the difference after coming off the bench against Bosnia & Herzegovina on Monday.

He set up Trent Alexander-Arnold's goal which effectively killed the game off, teasing a defender on the left wing while closely guarding the ball before quickly cutting inside and delivering a searching cross to his team-mate. Minutes later, he showcased his ability to suck defenders in, taking out two opponents before giving the ball back to James Maddison, leading to Harry Kane bundling in the third goal.

Grealish's cameo was a reminder of the value he brings as a highly-experienced player at a truly elite club and looked to have won him a seat on the plane to Germany. But, ultimately, it was too little, too late.

Getty Southgate's latest victim

Gareth Southgate's decision to leave Grealish out of his final 26-man squad for the tournament may have left the player devastated and shocked his team-mates, including Declan Rice. But including him was always a risk after the disappointing season he has had, which contrasts with the consistent form his fellow attacking midfielders had shown.

Southgate has often been criticised for his perceived loyalty to the old guard and not always picking the most in-form players, but this year he has done no such thing. He showed no mercy to Marcus Rashford and Jordan Henderson after their miserable seasons when he banished them from the preliminary squad, having already cut Raheem Sterling and Kalvin Phillips loose.

Grealish had been a big part of England's campaigns at the 2022 World Cup and previous European Championship, and Southgate said after the Bosnia game that he was "a player that we love having with the group.. a great character to work with".

AdvertisementGetty Lagging behind

But Grealish has been lagging behind his competitors this season. He started just 10 Premier League games for City, scoring three goals and providing one assist. That's only four goal contributions all season, as many as City defenders Nathan Ake and Kyle Walker, and fewer than Josko Gvardiol.

Jarrod Bowen contributed to 22 goals for West Ham, who finished ninth in the league. Anthony Gordon got 21 for Newcastle to force his way into Southgate's plans, while Eberechi Eze, who played a massive part in Crystal Palace's resurgence, finished the campaign with 15 goal contributions.

Phil Foden, who Grealish had usurped in the City line-up the previous term, got 27 goal contributions on his way to being named Premier League Player of the Season. Bukayo Saka, meanwhile, got 25, while Cole Palmer provided a colossal 33.

Unlike in previous tournaments, where the likes of Phillips and Henderson kept their place due to a lack of competition, the bar to get into the England squad has been raised to skyscraper levels. Grealish has not been able to keep up, and he will have to take radical steps to get back into the national team.

Getty Ravaged by injuries

Grealish's season was hindered by an untimely clash with Sheffield United player Ollie McBurnie in August, which the player called "the worst injury I've ever had". The dead leg he suffered sidelined him for six games, and he succumbed to two muscular injuries later in the campaign, against Copenhagen and Luton Town, which further disrupted his flow.

He also fell ill in November, and in December had to deal with a traumatic break-in at his house while he was playing away at Everton. It would be tempting to view the last season as a write-off, an anomaly that won't be repeated.

But merely staying injury-free next term is unlikely to be enough to reclaim his place in the City team, and by extension the England side.

Getty Afterthought

Even when he had put his injury issues behind him, Grealish was a mere afterthought for Guardiola at the business end of the season, playing just 10 minutes in City's final five games. He missed the trip to Fulham altogether and was an unused substitute in the last two games against Tottenham and West Ham, as well as in the FA Cup final defeat by Manchester United.

In some of those games, Guardiola dispensed with traditional wingers altogether, using Gvardiol as an inverted full-back and pushing Foden inside. On other occasions when he did want a probing left-winger, he turned to Jeremy Doku.

The Belgian appeared in all of the final five games, starting and providing an assist against West Ham while making a real difference when he was brought on against United at Wembley, scoring and almost dragging City level.

Guardiola treaded carefully when asked after the FA Cup final why he used Grealish so little. The City manager said: "He will be back. He’s struggled this season and Jeremy [Doku] has made an incredible step forward as everyone has seen in the last games. But Jack will be back at the level of last season, I'm pretty sure."