Jack Grealish still believes Gareth Southgate should have taken him to Euro 2024 but is feeling the love under interim England boss Lee Carsley.
The 29-year-old was a high-profile omission from the summer's shot at glory in Germany having been part of the team that reached the Euro 2020 showpiece and then 2022 World Cup quarter-finals.
Grealish was "absolutely heartbroken" to be dropped from the expanded pre-tournament selection and Southgate’s decision still sticks in the craw.
"I think everyone can imagine I was absolutely devastated," the Manchester City winger told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"I mentioned it before saying that it was probably one of the most difficult periods of my life, in terms of football especially.
"But I think when you’re in the situation you’ve got to try and flip it into a positive and do what you can to come back stronger and better for it. I’m obviously still working towards that now.
"I felt like I didn’t have the best season. You look at some players in my position, the likes of Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon, Jarrod Bowen, people like this, they scored a lot of goals, which 100 per cent I agree with.
"But I know that my game is not just about goals. I think I give so much more to the team than just goals.
"I think you need a bit of a balance in every position and I class myself as quite an experienced player now. I’ve played in quite a lot of big games, Champions League finals, FA Cup finals and I’ve won a lot of stuff now.
"I still think I should have (been picked) but obviously it wasn’t meant to be."
Grealish digested that disappointment during a rare summer off, although he admits watching any of the Euros was "really difficult".
He was recalled in Carsley’s first selection having made a promising start to
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