Jack Grealish must rise to Roy Keane challenge as Man City man looks to realise £100m potential
Man City boss Pep Guardiola, like all club managers, is not a fan of the international break but even he must have been glad to see Jack Grealish's successful reintegration into the England setup.
After the disappointment of missing out on the Three Lions squad for EURO 2024 under Gareth Southgate, Grealish was recalled by new interim manager Lee Carsley.
He was straight back in the starting XI, too, scoring from the number 10 position in Saturday's 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League.
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Grealish's performance caught the eye, not least of former Ireland captain and ITV pundit, Roy Keane, who was also impressed with his performance in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Finland.
"[The] Biggest thing for Jack is, I definitely think he needs to play regularly at Man City and that’s obviously difficult, the challenges there," Keane told ITV.
"I think he needs to be sharp. When he’s not playing regularly he does lose that sharpness very quickly. So it’s key he gets games at City.
"Usually when you’re doing well at club level, you’re selected for your international team. So your bread and butter is what you do week-in, week-out at club level, particularly for players like Jack.
"After what’s happened this summer he’s reacted well, scored at the weekend, done well tonight. But looking forward, he has to play a lot more regularly for City."
And that is the challenge that now faces City's £100million man. After initially struggling in his first season at the Etihad Stadium, he emerged as one of the star men