A visibly devastated Jack Grealish received consolation from his Manchester City teammates after experiencing another injury setback on Tuesday night. The 28-year-old winger was forced to exit the pitch before halftime during City’s dominant 6-2 victory over Luton Town in the FA Cup fifth round at Kenilworth Road. Grealish, who had to be replaced by Jeremy Doku after just 38 minutes, displayed evident distress as he grappled with his latest injury blow, prompting an early substitution by manager Pep Guardiola.
After coming off, an emotional Grealish was seen hiding under a training jacket before his team-mates consoled him.
‘Looks like it [a recurrence of the groin injury],’ Guardiola said after the game.
‘It’s the second time. Hopefully this time he can recover well.’
‘I didn’t speak to the doctor but I think he was complaining a bit about his groin.
‘He felt really good but unfortunately was injured again.’
“It’s been a tough season for him. He’ll have to recover well and help us when he’s able to come back.”
Speaking ahead of the FA Cup fifth round, Guardiola backed the former Aston Villa captain to put a patchy season behind him and play a significant role in City’s fight for silverware.
‘Over the last month, Jack is back in terms of many things,’ Guardiola said. ‘That’s why he played an important game in the Champions League in Copenhagen.
‘Hopefully he can make the impact he had last season. It depends on him. I try to be fair in my decision.
‘He played lots of minutes last season, and this season less in the beginning. He is the same player, he has the same manager, and the way we play has not changed.’
Grealish was integral in City winning the Treble last season, but has just three goals and two assists from 26 appearances to far this term and Guardiola doesn’t believe he’s yet hit the heights of the Treble campaign.
Nothing has changed. It’s just the way he has performed. That’s the difference,’ the City manager said.
‘I said from day one: we need him, he has a special quality for our team. We need him. It depends on him. Hopefully he can do a good last three months.
‘The players don’t have to convince me. They have to convince themselves that they deserve to play.’