Pep Guardiola admitted Jack Grealish's Manchester City future remains unclear following the decision to leave him out of his squad for the Club World Cup.
The City manager appeared to have opened the door for Grealish to leave the Etihad Stadium when he axed him from the 27-man group for this summer’s expanded 32-team tournament in the US.
That decision came after Grealish, a £100 million signing from Aston Villa four years ago and one of the leading stars of the 2023 treble success, endured a troubled 2024-25 season, making just seven Premier League starts.
But Guardiola, while offering no guarantees about the England midfielder’s prospects at City, says his absence is more about giving him time away to regroup.
Speaking ahead of City’s tournament opener against Moroccan side Wydad Casablanca on Wednesday night (8pm UAE) in Philadelphia, Guardiola said: “He had a conversation with the club and decided the best. Jack is an exceptional player but he didn’t [play a lot]. We decided he has to play.
“We’re honest and he’s honest. We decided the best was to stay [behind] and find that he can play, that he can come back to the player of the year of the treble and all his career at Aston Villa.
“But the fact is he didn’t play much minutes the last two seasons. He has to come back to play and have the butterflies in his stomach that he can play every three days and show again the quality that he has.
“We decided don’t come here. What happens, I don’t know, but if he doesn’t [leave] he is a player for Man City and he will be back.”
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Manchester City's Stefan Ortega, Marcus Bettinelli and Ederson during training at the Lynn University in Florida ahead of the Club World Cup. Reuters -
Manchester City's Savinho during training. Reuters -
Manchester City's new signing Rayan Cherki, left, and Nathan Ake during training. Reuters -
Rayan Ait-Nouri trains for the Club World Cup in Florida. Reuters -
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola oversees training. Reuters -
Rodri and Bernardo Silva train in Florida. Reuters -
Omar Marmoush with Oscar Bobb during training. Reuters -
Manchester City's Manuel Akanji during training. reuters
Guardiola denied this meant he felt Grealish no longer has a hunger for the game, but said he failed to compete with his teammates and did not deserve to be picked.
He said: “The reason he didn’t play is my decisions. Football is competing with each other – not just Jack, all of them.
“They compete [for] who deserves to play. The butterflies are an example of the tension and they happen for all the players.
“Over the last two years he didn’t play much and I take responsibility for that, but he has to play and we reflected that it was better not to come here.”
Another player not involved in the US is England right-back Kyle Walker, who spent the second half of last season on loan at AC Milan and appears set to leave the club.
The 35-year-old has been linked with Everton but Guardiola was unwilling to discuss the matter.
He said: “I don’t have any news. It’s the same case for Jack. About the links with other teams, you have to ask [director of football] Hugo [Viana].”
WAC will 'make it hard' for City
Wydad coach Amine Benhachem has promised that his team will compete with Manchester City in their opening game at the Club World Cup despite being rank outsiders.
"It is going to be a difficult match, let's not kid ourselves - Manchester City, enough said," Benhachem said on the eve of the game. "This is going to be hard, but we have our chances. We have our way of playing and we can at least compete."
Wydad are one of the giants of North African football and qualified for Fifa's new competition as a recent winner of the CAF Champions League. However, they had a disappointing season in Morocco, finishing third in their domestic league.
That performance led to them parting company with South Africa-born coach Rulani Mokwena, with Benhachem replacing him in the dugout.
"We want to make it hard for them. The intensity will be there and we do have our own ambitions," he added of the game at Lincoln Financial Field against the 2023 UEFA Champions League winners.
Wydad will also face Italian giants Juventus and Al Ain in Group G, with the top two advancing to the last 16.
"The central part is that any opponent we face will not be comfortable. We are ready and we have surprises for our opponents," Benhachem said.
