Lee Hendrie has asked his former club to go back for Jack Grealish who is in a weird place at Manchester City.
The English attacking midfielder has been a key part of Pep Guardiola’s team in the three years since switching Birmingham for Manchester, and even played a starring role in the 2023/24 season in which they won their fourth straight Premier League title. However, he has been poor in front of goal and is on a run that is frankly hard to believe or explain.
In a year which Manchester City have dominated scoring to a large extent—even with their terrible run in the last two months of 2024—Jack Grealish has failed to find himself among the goals. The attacker’s last goal came in December 2023 and with 2024 officially over following their win away at Leicester City, this means that he will end the calendar year without a goal.
This has attracted lots of criticism to the player but Hendrie still believes in his talents and has called out to Villa, where Grealish came up, to make a move for him in the coming transfer windows.
“I’d love to see Jack Grealish back at Aston Villa. Grealish is Villa through and through,” Hendrie said in an interview.
“I remember speaking to him when he signed for City, I was commentating on one of their games, and we had an in-depth chat, and he was saying he’s finding it difficult to adapt to new surroundings. I said to him, get on with it and go on and enjoy your football. It’s your time to go on and win trophies, and that is exactly what he’s done.
“He’s such a fantastic person; he’s got a massive heart. I don’t think that we’ve seen the best version of Grealish at City, or the version that steps out onto the grass and enjoys himself. We’ve only seen snippets, but I think that Jack is essentially playing in a way that his manager demands of him.
“When I watch Jack play for England, it’s like he’s a different person. He plays with a lot more freedom. If you’re looking at his contributions, goals and assists, then you can say that it’s been disappointing for him, but we know he’s got stacks of ability, and we know he can contribute a lot more.
“It’s at the stage now where Jack should probably be thinking about leaving the football club. Nobody could deny that the move hasn’t been successful, he’s won everything there is to win during his time there, but I think for himself, he needs to find his enjoyment in playing again. He’d be an asset for any top football club. I would love him at Villa, but would they have the finances to bring him back? It would probably be a complicated deal to complete.
“I know the Villa fans have given him some stick, but I think they would love to see him back at Villa Park. He wouldn’t be coming for a pay day; he’d be coming to win something with Villa and help take the club up a level. It would be brilliant if he came back. I do feel he has to go and leave Man City at the moment to find some enjoyment in his game,” Hendrie concluded.
