Grealish shuts down Man City 'crisis' talk after Luton win
Manchester City star Jack Grealish has played down reports suggesting that Pep Guardiola’s side are in a “crisis” following a poor run of form in the Premier League.
Before their narrow 2-1 win over Luton Town on Sunday, Man City were on a run of three draws and one defeat in their past four league games and they have now slipped to fourth place in the English top flight standings.
However, Grealish, who joined the club for €117.5 million in 2021, has insisted that crisis talk is foolish, stating that City’s uncharacteristic set of recent results is due to the level of opponent they have faced over the last few weeks.
What has been said?
During an interview after their 2-1 win over Luton, Grealish said: “We lost one game in four and we played four brilliant teams (Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Villa).
"Look at Arsenal. Did they beat Chelsea? No. Did they beat Villa? No. Did they beat Spurs? No. They didn’t win against those teams. But then we didn’t win… it’s: ‘City are in a crisis, blah blah blah.’
“I think people try to act as if there’s a big crisis when, in reality, there’s not.
A RAPID TURNAROUND FROM MANCHESTER CITY! ⚡ pic.twitter.com/mCcDicUuu3
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 10, 2023
“We’re four points off the top of the league and going to Saudi Arabia next week to try to win a cup that cements us as the best in the world.”
After facing Crvena zvezda in the Champions League on Wednesday and Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, Guardiola’s side will travel to Saudi Arabia to compete in the 2023 Club World Cup.
Their qualification for the tournament was sealed by winning last season’s Champions League and City go into the competition as heavy favourites.
In the last 16 editions of the Club World Cup, the Champions League victor has only failed to win the tournament on one occasion. That happened in 2012 when Corinthians beat Chelsea 1-0 in Japan.