Gareth Southgate changed his mind on Jack Grealish after 'brutally honest' remark

Gareth Southgate has made some bold choices for his England squad selection for the Euros, with the notable exclusion of Jack Grealish being a major talking point.

The £100million Manchester City ace, who was part of the Three Lions' Euro 2020 and 2022 World Cup squads, was one of the most high-profile players to be denied a seat on the plane to Germany this summer.

This comes despite Southgate's previous admissions of being a "huge fan" of Grealish, even when the ex-Aston Villa player hasn't been at his best, which was arguably the case throughout the 2023/24 season. However, the England boss acknowledged that Grealish is often "brutally honest" about his own performances, a trait that can negatively impact his form and confidence.

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"Sometimes I think he's too hard on himself," Southgate remarked after England's 1-0 victory over Australia in October.

He went on to praise Grealish as a "fabulous talent" and mentioned that having players like him and James Maddison, who was also left out of the squad, can be beneficial as they "see the world differently".

Eight months on and both Grealish and Maddison find themselves excluded from the team. Explaining his decision, Southgate stated: "We're blessed with options in attacking areas, all offering something slightly different. Madders and Jack give us something different as well, so they're tough calls.

"We've gone over it and over it as staff to try and be fair. We back our decisions but we recognise we could have gone a different route. Both boys are big characters and great to work