Pep Guardiola has admitted Grealish could be playing football elsewhere soon
He started just seven times for the club last season, four years after joining them
City will play in the competition later this month, though Grealish will not travel
By LEWIS BROWNING
Published: 12:39 EDT, 4 June 2025 | Updated: 12:43 EDT, 4 June 2025
Jack Grealish is set to be left out of Manchester City's squad for the Club World Cup as his departure looms.
City signed now-29-year-old Grealish for £100million in 2021 and he is believed to earn £300,000 a week but he has slipped down the pecking order under Pep Guardiola.
He was left out of the squad entirely for City's final Premier League game against Fulham and has only started one league match since Christmas - seven in total last season.
The midfielder was told by Guardiola that he could be playing football at 'another place' next season and it appears increasingly likely that his four-year stint in Manchester is drawing to a close.
The current transfer window closes on June 10 ahead of the Club World Cup in the United States this summer, but it seems unlikely Grealish will leave before then. An exit is more likely when it opens again on June 16.
But the England star is unlikely to play for City again, with the forward not set to be part of the City team at this summer's tournament.
Grealish has been a bit-part player for City in recent times, starting just seven Premier League matches this season
He missed out on Thomas Tuchel's England squad again but is targeting a place at the World Cup next summer
The clubs involved in the tournament are required to register an initial squad of between 26 and 35 players, including three goalkeepers. Grealish will not be part of City's party.
Grealish has won three Premier League titles, the Champions League and FA Cup at the Etihad but only scored three goals in all competitions last season.
Grealish has missed out on the past three England squads and he looks set to move on from City to rejuvenate his career ahead of next year's World Cup.
It has reportedly been recognised that Grealish being in the United States for a tournament that could last a month isn't the best was to resolve his future.
Guardiola added of Grealish: 'It's nothing personal with Jack. I'm the person who fought for him to come here and the person who fought for him to stay here this season.
'I'm the one who said I want Jack Grealish. What happens in the future is a job for Txiki [Begiristain, current director of football), Hugo [Viana, incoming director of football] and the agents.'
England boss Thomas Tuchel, meanwhile, said of his omission from his first camp in charge in March: 'As a headline, I love Jack. I love everything about him. I love his personality, I love his quality.
The guy has courage, he can take the heat, he's not afraid of the Bernabeu whistles when he's on the ball, it does not affect him and if it affects him only in the best way.
Pep Guardiola has admitted that Grealish could soon be playing his football elsewhere
'So is he a player that should be available and can have an impact in our squad? Yes, 100 per cent. But lately, he simply has no rhythm and he himself, and I agree 100 per cent with this.
'I'm not judging anyone, not at all, but it's just a characteristic of Jack, he gets better with every minute. The more he plays, the better he gets and then he becomes a proper machine.'