Jack Grealish referenced one of his most painful days as an Aston Villa player as he celebrated winning the FA Cup with Manchester City.
City beat Manchester United 2-1 at Wembley to seal a domestic double and move one step closer to a historic treble – they now play Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul next Saturday having already won the Premier League title.
Ilkay Gundogan scored City’s opening goal inside 13 seconds before Grealish literally handed United their equaliser after inadvertently conceding a first-half penalty.
But Gundogan was on target again after the break to give City their decisive lead, leaving Grealish to thank his team-mate for helping spare his blushes – and reflect on Villa’s 4-0 defeat to Arsenal in the 2015 final.
Speaking post-match,
Jack Grealish said: “It’s unbelievable. It’s the stuff you dream of when you’re a little kid. I lost one when I was at Aston Villa and I was desperate to win one, and now I’ve done it.”
A 19-year-old Grealish had been instrumental in Villa beating Liverpool in the 2015 FA Cup semi-final, but Tim Sherwood’s team were unable to repeat the feat in the final as they were outclassed by Arsenal.
Discussing the penalty, awarded by referee Paul Tierney after a VAR referral,
Jack Grealish said: “I don’t even think it’s a penalty. I wasn’t even looking at it, I turned and the ball hit my arm but Gundogan saved me.”
Looking ahead to the Champions League final, Grealish made clear that time would be made to celebrate City’s FA Cup success.
Jack Grealish said: “We’ll have a good night tonight and then straight back at it on Sunday and Monday for a big game next week. I don’t win an FA Cup every week so I’m going to enjoy it. But then straight back to training and recovery tomorrow.”
