What Gareth Southgate said about Jack Grealish’s place in England Euro 2024 squad

Gareth Southgate gave an evasive response when asked about Jack Grealish’s place in England’s Euro 2024 squad.

The Manchester City winger was named in the Three Lions’ provisional 33-man training squad that will be cut down to 26 before the competition kicks off in Germany next week. Grealish is seen as one of the names to possibly miss out following a disappointing campaign at club level.

The 28-year-old started just one of City’s final seven matches of the season and didn’t play a single minute in the last four games, including the FA Cup final. He also managed just six goal contributions in 2023/24, numbers which don’t stack up well against the likes of Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Jarrod Bowen, Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka, Southgate’s other options in the wide areas.

The England manager has also shown his ruthless streak by cutting Marcus Rashford from the squad, and he was asked on Sunday whether Grealish is at risk of being in a similar boat to the Manchester United forward.

“I don’t think we’re defining that just yet,” Southgate replied after a long pause. “I think we know where we’re likely to be. It’s hard to be quite so specific because we keep sitting down and saying: ‘OK, if it’s this or this...’ 

“Then somebody else in the room says: ‘Yeah, but what about if we lose that player there, or that one doesn’t come through with his injury? Do we need another one in this area?’. Time is our friend this week. It’s worth using the time.”

“I haven’t talked to him specifically about the Cup final,” Southgate added on City’s no.10. “But he has been really bright and he loves being here. He’s had a good energy about his training.

“This season he has not played as much. I’m sure he would have liked that to be different but we know the qualities he can bring. He is a player we enjoy working with and a character we enjoy having within the group.”