Pep Guardiola claims England interim manager Lee Carsley did not contact him before calling up Jack Grealish, despite the Manchester City boss stating the forward will not be fit for Saturday’s trip to Brighton.
Grealish has not featured for City since their 2-1 win at Wolves on 20 October, but Carsley, who will make way for Thomas Tuchel after the upcoming Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland, opted to select the 29-year-old for his 26-man squad.
Carsley stated that Grealish, who has been recovering from injury, had trained for two days, something that Guardiola was quick to clarify by saying he had been in the gym and only started training outside on Friday.
Guardiola said: “In 17 days, he [Grealish] didn’t train once. [Friday] was his first day training and he only did 20 minutes. So this is the reality.”
Your #ThreeLions for their final camp of 2024! 🦁
— England (@England) November 7, 2024
When asked about Grealish’s selection for the upcoming internationals, the City boss added:
“They [City’s medical department] haven’t told me they [England] spoke.
“It’s a question for the [England] manager. I’m not involved in that, he can select him. The day after Wolves, he was injured and he spent 17 days out.
“They can select all the players that they want. Jack trained and believed he can help us [in training]. I’m not the guy who can say you cannot go.”
A Saturday against the Seagulls 💪#ManCity pic.twitter.com/gS7mr6GMYb
— Manchester City (@ManCity) November 9, 2024
Guardiola did rule Grealish out of this weekend’s clash with Brighton, as City look to bounce back from suffering three consecutive defeats for the first time since the 2017-18 season.
Defeat on Saturday, a fourth straight loss, would be a first in Guardiola’s managerial career.
On his own future, the City boss is yet to sign new terms with the club.
His current deal expires next summer and while the manager’s last two contract extensions were agreed in November, Guardiola said he had no plans to travel to Abu Dhabi, the home nation of City owner Sheikh Mansour.
