Jack Grealish is adamant that his shock omission from England’s European Championship squad this summer was a mistake.
A ‘devastated’ Manchester City winger disagreed with Gareth Southgate’s decision to axe him from the travelling party to Germany.
Brought in from the cold by interim boss Lee Carsley last month, Grealish feels liberated in the new England set-up ahead of Thursday’s Nations League match against Greece.
‘I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t really agree with it,’ said Grealish. ‘I think you need a bit of a balance in every position on the pitch.
‘You look at some players in my position — the likes of Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon or Jarrod Bowen — they’ve scored a lot of goals. But I know that my game is not just about goals. I give so much more to the team than just goals.
Jack Grealish is delighted to be continuing his recall to England’s international set-up
Grealish (left) hailed the impact interim head coach Lee Carsley (right) has had after recalling the Man City star
Grealish believes former England boss Gareth Southgate (right) made a mistake in not picking him for Euro 2024
‘I still think that, yeah, I should have (gone to the Euros) but obviously it wasn’t meant to be.’
Grealish, 29, admitted he found watching England’s matches from afar difficult but says Carsley has made a point of embracing him since his appointment.
‘I thank the manager here for giving me that chance and having that trust in me,’ Grealish, who became a father this week, added.
‘It’s really meant a lot. When I play under managers that show trust in me and communicate with me the way he has in the past two camps, it really helps me.
‘I don’t want to go into what the biggest differences (between Southgate and Carsley) are too much, but since I’ve come here I’ve felt a lot of love from the manager.’