When Jack Grealish received the ball on the edge of the Manchester City area in the second half, dribbled through Nottingham Forest’s high pressure and set his team-mates off in transition, earning a round of applause from the home support, it served as a timely reminder Pep Guardiola signed him to do precisely that.
Grealish joined City amid a midfield transition of sorts. David Silva had departed the Etihad Stadium the year before, and many people at the club believed Bernardo Silva would follow suit within 12 months. With Ilkay Gundogan in his 30s, Grealish, who had primarily played in a free No 10 role under Dean Smith at Aston Villa, was considered part of the long-term answer for how Guardiola planned to evolve his midfield, using his power and dribbling ability to move the team through the phases and win fouls high up the pitch.
Three years after the then-British record £100million (£127m) transfer, the 29-year-old’s primary contribution has come from the left wing.
As evidenced by his opening goal in City’s 3-0 win over Forest on Wednesday, Bernardo Silva remains as essential to Guardiola’s plans as ever in midfield, and Gundogan lined up behind Grealish as the No 6 in the absence of Rodri and Mateo Kovacic.
Grealish has had brilliant moments in a City shirt, notably becoming a vital cog from the left in the treble-winning season, but his place in the side has rarely felt secure. Most recently, he lost his spot out wide to Matheus Nunes, typically a central midfielder, in City’s 2-0 defeat by Liverpool at Anfield at the weekend.
Having tried almost everything else during City’s run of seven matches without a win (including six defeats) ahead of the Forest game, Guardiola threw caution to the wind and experimented with the 29-year-old in the role he had initially envisioned for him. The result was potentially game-changing for City’s prospects.
Grealish lined up as a left-sided central midfielder, with Gundogan behind him protecting the defence and Kevin De Bruyne and Silva positioned on the right. Despite rarely occupying a role where he is expected to pick the ball up from defence and hold off pressure since joining City, Grealish looked comfortable as he shrugged off the opposition press several times, demonstrating composure and the confidence to take touches in dangerous areas and use his body to evade challenges.
“Our football is always built from the midfield,” Guardiola said after the game. “They make our tempo and the way we have to play. We controlled the game, and Jack gave us that pace. When it came to accelerating and controlling, he did it really well. I’m so happy for him.
“I know his quality. He has the attributes to play holding midfield. He can keep the ball, break the lines and he has composure.”
His positional discipline was essential to City’s improved fortunes in sustaining attacks, particularly in the second half when Forest had fewer opportunities to break through in transition. It also allowed inverted left-back Josko Gvardiol to push forward as a third-man runner, even beyond Erling Haaland on more than one occasion, to connect with crosses and latch onto passes from deeper in midfield.
Grealish’s willingness to fill in for Gvardiol — who caused havoc for Forest’s defence in the first half and had two excellent opportunities to add to his three league goals this season — or lurk in central areas around the 18-yard box to help prevent transition opportunities, provided something closer to the balance in midfield and defence that Guardiola has been looking for in Rodri’s absence.
“Jack is so good at controlling the tempo of the game and holding the ball,” De Bruyne told City’s club media after the game. “You can’t really get it off him, and then sliding through plays. That’s his quality.
“I think we needed a bit more control and he was able to do that with Bernardo, Gundo and myself in the middle, and Jeremy (Doku), who is a different player and very electric. I think we performed well as a team but I think Jack did exceptional.”
Still, there was evidence, particularly in the first half, that Guardiola has not yet wholly sorted City’s issues defending transitions in midfield. Questions remain over Gundogan’s ability to track back and win tackles, with Forest’s energetic attack breezing past the 34-year-old German on several occasions, reflected in a yellow card received in the second half for cynically pulling down Morgan Gibbs-White, who looked set to break away. Whether Guardiola can find a truly convincing midfield balance without going into the January market remains to be seen.
In reality, City were fortunate to escape with a clean sheet after gifting Forest several promising goalscoring opportunities, and unfortunate injuries to Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji will not help City’s defensive problems. Ake is potentially set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after Guardiola said the Dutchman’s injury, which forced him off minutes before full time, “doesn’t look good”.
However, this result arrests the slide and serves as a rough blueprint for how City can start to control matches again. With a trip to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace on the horizon, a quick attack and athletic midfielders will once again test Guardiola’s side, but Grealish, who completed 56 out of 57 passes, showed signs of the maturity necessary to help City find a new way to sustain attacks and keep possession.
It is early days, but Guardiola’s vision of Grealish’s potential evolution into a deeper-lying midfielder could yet manifest into something great for City.
(Top photo: Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)
