“It depends” – Pep Guardiola reveals what Jack Grealish must do to get back in the Manchester City line-up

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has revealed what he believes Jack Grealish must do in order to break back into the first-team starting line-ups.

The England international has endured a largely challenging campaign following the highs of Manchester City’s treble-winning season last time around, with a mixture of fitness struggles and form hampering his consistency in Guardiola’s line-ups.

After missing a number of successive line-ups during the start of the new calendar year, with Pep Guardiola crediting a need to get back up to sharpness and form in training, Grealish was handed a start in the UEFA Champions League against FC Copenhagen.

However, the England international’s last-16 first-leg opportunity ended in heartbreak after being hauled off the field just 21 minutes into the contest due to a groin injury, with Grealish left visibly distraught.

Speaking to the media during a recent press conference, Manchester City manager discussed Jack Grealish and what needs to be done in order to break back into the first-team starting line-up when he recovers from injury.

“It depends on his form, and his performance. It depends on that,” Pep Guardiola said. “It depends on him. We will need time. If one player gets injured after 10, 15 minutes it’s because still they were not fit, fit at all.”

Manchester City have a mass of fixtures coming up across the next few weeks, and with Jack Grealish expected to be in contention for a meeting with Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United on March 3, the wide forward cold still have a huge role to play this season.

For the time being, Pep Guardiola will make use of his existing options in wide roles with the likes of Jeremy Doku and Oscar Bobb occupying the left-sided position since Grealish’s latest injury setback.

It was the latter who filled in on Tuesday night as Pep Guardiola’s men took on Brentford in the Premier League, with Erling Haaland’s second-half effort claiming all three points in the perfect reaction to a 1-1 draw with Chelsea last weekend.