Manchester City ace Jack Grealish took to Instagram on Sunday night to seemingly throw shade at former England boss Gareth Southgate while hailing Lee Carsley for rejuvenating his international experience.
The winger expressed gratitude to the interim manager for “bringing back the enjoyment” following his country’s stellar performance under Carsley’s brief tenure.
England put on an exhibition of football prowess with a 5-0 thrashing of the Republic of Ireland, propelling them straight back into the premier division of the UEFA Nations League.
The rampage was kicked off by Harry Kane’s spot-kick and intensified with maiden international goals from Anthony Gordon, Conor Gallagher, Jarrod Bowen, and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.
Despite not having boots on the pitch due to a congested club calendar leading several players, including himself, to bow out this month, Grealish’s nod to Carsley, who selected him in all initial squads and nailed five wins in six, hinted at his discontent with past exclusions.
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As Carsley wraps up ahead of the Thomas Tuchel era, Grealish sent best wishes his way but with a suspected nudge at Southgate for overlooking him in the Euro 2024 26-man squad, reports the Express.
Grealish wrote on Instagram: “What a guy and manager! Absolute legend and thank you for bringing back the enjoyment in an England shirt.”
The suggestion from Grealish’s Instagram story appear to hint he was less than thrilled playing under Southgate. Speaking after his omission from the England squad this past summer, Grealish said: “I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t really agree with it. I think you need a bit of balance in every position on the pitch.
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“You look at some players in my position – the likes of Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon or Jarrod Bowen – they’ve scored a lot of goals.
“But I know that my game is not just about goals. I give so much more to the team than just goals. I still think that, yeah, I should have [gone to the Euros], but obviously it wasn’t meant to be.
“[Carsley’s faith] really meant a lot. When I play under managers that show trust in me and communicate with me the way he has in the past two camps, it really helps me.”