Manchester, Aug 10: Lionel Messi isn’t the only player who has been making a tearful farewell to his long-time club.
Jack Grealish’s final moments as an Aston Villa player before his $139 million move to Manchester City saw him address his teammates and the club’s management at the team hotel last week, and it got emotional.
“Everyone has seen the way Messi was at his final press conference,” Grealish said, referring to the Argentina great who is leaving Barcelona likely for Paris Saint-Germain, “and that is the exact way I felt.” “I teared up a little bit myself,” he added.
Grealish, who had been with Villa since the age of 6, was presented as a City player on Monday, four days after he officially became British football’s most expensive player.
He said there were “six or seven” reasons why he wanted to move to City. Playing under Pep Guardiola is high among them.
“I have been here now for two days,” Grealish said, “and honestly the way he is in training is unbelievable, I can’t explain it” – but the thing the England midfielder kept coming back to was playing in the Champions League. And winning it – something City has never achieved.
“That’s exactly why I’ve come here,” the 25-year-old Grealish continued.
Grealish made his debut for City as a second-half substitute in a 1-0 loss to Leicester on Saturday in the Community Shield, the traditional curtain-raiser to the new season played between the Premier League and FA Cup winners. (AP)
