26 July 2023 , 17:00
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Jack Grealish is planning to give the iconic image of him celebrating Manchester City ’s Treble pride of place at home.
Grealish, arms outstretched in the pouring rain at the back of an open-topped bus as it weaves its way through the throng of ecstatic fans, appears to be giving thanks as he closes his eyes to the heavens.
He is honest enough to admit that, just a few months before, he feared that Pep Guardiola’s men were going to finish the season with nothing. But now City’s claim on immortality has sunk in, the £100 million midfielder wants even more - and he’s not too proud to admit that the first trophy he is desperate to lift is the Community Shield.
“It’s a nice photo, isn’t it?" said Grealish when asked about the photograph that encapsulated the scenes of joy on Deansgate. “I’ve not got a copy yet - but I’ll have to get it framed in my house.
“It’s deserved after winning the Treble - and that photo will bring back good memories forever. It was a tense few weeks. If you go back to the international break in March, I was thinking ‘are we going to win anything this year?’
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“We were out of the Carabao Cup, second in the league and in the quarter-final of the Champions League and semi-final of the FA Cup. We still had so much to play for and you look at it and think ‘are we really going to win anything?’
“Then, after that international break, especially in April, we played eight or nine games and drew only one, away at Bayern Munich, when we didn’t have to win.
“Every other game we won. We were unstoppable. In that period, that was the most unstoppable I’ve felt during my whole career, whether that’s playing for England or here at City. I just had so much belief - and going on to win the treble was brilliant.
Jack Grealish during the Manchester City Treble celebrations (Manchester City FC via Getty Ima)“I’ve said to a few of the guys that now I’m desperate to win the Community Shield. This is my third year at City and I’ve lost two of those finals. So I’m desperate.
“As a footballer you want to win as much as possible but you also want to win everything. That’s what I want. At least once! You tick them off, don’t you? I lost out on two and now I want one.”
It’s fair to say that Grealish made the most of his holidays. He enjoyed doing the rounds of exclusive bars in luxury resorts and also linking up with Erling Haaland for dinner dates in the South of France.
He said: “Erling was happy to see me! We get on really well. I wouldn’t say we’re a similar age, because there’s three or four years difference. But we get on really well - on and off the pitch.
“He’s a great guy, so humble, and obviously an unbelievable footballer. I met up with him in the South of France in the summer, when we went out for some food and stuff. But then I didn’t see him for a while. It was nice to see him again - but it was nice to see everyone.”
But now it’s back to the serious stuff - although Grealish did oblige a couple of Japanese fans by joining them in an impromptu dance as they waited for his autograph.
Guardiola is putting his squad through their paces in the searing heat of the Far East. Grealish prepared himself for what was coming by spending the final days of his break training in the Dubai desert.
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After City had followed up their opening 5-3 tour victory over Yokohama Marinos with a 2-1 win over Bayern Munich on Wednesday, he outlined the team spirit that enabled the Blues to complete the clean sweep of Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup. Even though skipper Ilkay Gundogan has moved to Barcelona.
Grealish said: “We want more. That’s why we’re all at a top club and why we’re so successful. Everyone wants to win.
“We have talent, we have everything. We have experience, we have young guys and the pure talent. But you also need the winning mentality - and we’ve definitely got that.
“I can’t explain what it is. Obviously I’ve played in teams before when you have little cliques and stuff, sometimes people of the same nationality.
“But I love Bernardo Silva as much as I love the English guys. That’s one good thing we have. Me, Ruben Dias, Bernardo, we get on so well together, all of us. It’s just so nice coming into training every day, knowing that you’re playing with and training with a group of friends.
“Since I’ve been here we’ve always had brilliant captains who do stuff off the pitch to keep the team together, whether that’s having a meal or anything.
“We have such a great group here and hopefully it can continue. We’ve lost Gundo, who was a massive part of us, but you make so many good friends along the way in football and people do come and go. It’s obviously sad but we have a great team and a very strong group.”