Jack Grealish has been omitted from Manchester City's pre-season tour of Asia, sparking renewed questions about his future at the club. The England international spent last season on loan at Everton but had his spell cut short after fracturing his foot in January.
Recovery and training
Grealish has been working on his recovery at both Finch Farm and City's Etihad Campus this summer as he aims to regain full fitness. However, his absence from the touring squad has fueled widespread suggestions that he will depart this summer.
City will play three matches on their tour: against Inter Milan in Hong Kong, and both the K-League All-Stars and Atletico Madrid in South Korea. Grealish, meanwhile, is currently on holiday in Mallorca and posted images on Instagram from the island on Monday.
Maresca and Moyes comments
New City boss Enzo Maresca spoke about Grealish at his introductory press conference last week, expressing admiration but stopping short of guaranteeing his place. "At the moment, he's here. He's a Man City player," Maresca said. "I always said the same. In any club I join, I like to know if there are players that belong to the club. It's my duty to try to coach them. Jack is here. I have a good relation with Jack since I left (as a coach under Pep Guardiola). Also, we keep in touch, and the reason why is because he has a big heart and he's a very good guy. So this is the reason why. And then we see what happens."
Everton boss David Moyes also commented on Grealish's injury ahead of their final game of last season. "Obviously we like Jack a lot. We’ve looked after Jack all the time since his injury. It’s looking in good order now, the surgeon speaks very well about it and thinks it’s healing greatly. Normally a player would go back to his parent club and be looked after from there, but we will continue doing our best for Jack. He is incredibly well liked inside and outside the building but ultimately he is not our player, he is Man City’s player. We’ve had him on loan for a year and I have to say we’ve enjoyed having him."
