Jack Grealish has named playing in the Champions League, working with Pep Guardiola and winning trophies as the three biggest reasons why he joined Manchester City. After a worryingly slow transfer window so far, City’s summer has finally burst to life with the signing of Aston Villa talisman Grealish on a six-year deal. The Blues have decimated their own transfer record, as well as break the British record, by spending a huge £100million to sign the 25-year-old forward. It’s safe to say that a lot of Villa fans haven’t taken the news particularly well. Grealish first joined his hometown club at the age of six and went on to lead them to promotion back to the Premier League as well as keep them there with some brilliant performances. However, after 19 years at Villa Park, the allure of winning trophies at the Etihad proved too strong to resist.
Jack Grealish said: “That is the main reason [why I joined]. There are obviously a lot of reasons why I decided to come here. The manager has been a massive factor; playing under the best manager in the world was something I couldn’t really turn down. Obviously the players that we have got here, I think everyone knows how much I admire Kevin [De Bruyne]. It is going to become a dream come true to play alongside him. But competing for major trophies is something that I wanted to do. It was something I couldn’t turn down. Let’s hope it is a successful one.”
Playing in the Champions League, which City will now be more determined to win than ever after suffering heartbreak in last year’s final, was also key to his decision.
Jack Grealish added: “There was quite a few factors as to why I wanted to come like we just mentioned, competing for trophies. Playing in the Champions League was a massive thing for me, I haven’t done that yet. When I am sitting there on a Tuesday or Wednesday night last year it was just what I wanted to do. To be able to do it with this club is going to be a dream.”
