Jack Grealish expressed strong dissatisfaction with Pep Guardiola’s decision to bench him once again for Manchester City’s Monday night clash against Brentford.
Manchester City aims to narrow the gap with Liverpool to just two points by continuing their winning streak in Premier League fixtures, which commenced after their FIFA Club World Cup triumph.
Despite Brentford’s previous victories against Manchester City in the last season, Guardiola’s team has the opportunity to lead the Premier League standings with wins over Brentford and Everton in the upcoming week.
In Monday night’s match, led by striking duo Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland, Manchester City seeks to extend their unbeaten run to 12 games.
This marks De Bruyne’s third Premier League start of the year and Haaland’s first start since their loss to Aston Villa in early December.
Guardiola implemented several changes to the team that secured a 3-1 victory against Burnley, opting to start Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez, and Bernardo Silva. However, forward Jack Grealish reportedly expressed discontent over being benched for the fourth consecutive game, sparking frustration within the first-team squad regarding Guardiola’s lineup decisions.
According to reports from MCFCTone on X, Grealish was visibly displeased about being relegated to the substitutes’ bench for the Brentford fixture and even left the club’s training session early.
Despite not starting in the FA Cup third-round victory against Huddersfield Town in January, Grealish did make a substitute appearance in the recent victory over Burnley, led by Vincent Kompany.
Throughout the season, Grealish has made 18 starts for Manchester City and has also been utilized as a substitute on five occasions.
