Jack Grealish might need to leave Manchester City to save his “legacy” from being “ruined”, according to former Premier League striker Troy Deeney.
England winger Grealish joined City from Aston Villa for a then-British record £100million in the 2021 summer transfer window.
He took a while to settle at the Etihad but had an outstanding 2022/23 campaign, helping Pep Guardiola’s side win an historic Treble.
Grealish didn’t really kick on after that, though, and has been in and out of the starting XI since the start of 23/24.
The 29-year-old has struggled with niggling injuries but has not made enough statement performances when given the chance to prove himself ahead of Jeremy Doku.
There has always been transfer speculation given Grealish’s inability to thrive since leaving Villa, with Tottenham frequently linked with him.
A move elsewhere could help rejuvenate the England international’s career and Spurs would be a better fit than most teams, says ex-Watford captain Deeney.
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Deeney adds that staying at City could ruin Grealish’s “legacy” as he has not “lived up to” the potential from his Villa days.
“I think he is danger of having his legacy ruined,” he told talkSPORT.
“And what I mean by that is, I don’t think you can say he hasn’t lived up to his potential, because look at what he did at Villa and he did it for a sustained period of time.
“What’s happening now is, in football, it’s, ‘What have you done lately?,’ and he hasn’t done a great deal lately due to injuries and being out of the team.”
Birmingham fan Deeney continued: “I don’t wan’t him to go back to Villa for two reasons, selfishly, because I don’t want Villa to get good again, [saying this] with a Blues head on.
“But genuinely for him, I always think if you go back, there’s an expectation you’re going to be that person you was when you left.
“I think a fresh start would be great for him and somewhere where he’s the main man again and everyone is giving him the ball.
“Because people like Jack, they need to have the ball every couple of minutes – and not being stood on the side – and when they get it, run a little bit and pass it back.
“But I think you’re going to see a new role for him at City, I think you’re going to see him as a No.8 – just driving out of midfield.
“I think he can handle that position really well, and that’ll be good for England as well.”
On who Grealish could join if he does decide to leave City, Deeney said: “Spurs, he walks into that team in every position.
“Whether that’s as a winger, No.10 or No.8. Arsenal, no, I don’t think he works at Arsenal. Liverpool, he doesn’t at Liverpool.
“He’s obviously not going to go Manchester United, but he’s better than what they’ve got.
“Newcastle, easy. There’s loads of teams, anyone outside the top four, I’d argue he’d do well at Chelsea, but they’ve got about 75 wingers.
“He’s probably too cheap for them at £100m to be fair, they’d want to waste a bit more money!
“Anyone outside the top four, he would easily go into and dominate, if he went to Newcastle, it would be considered a massive step down for him.
“But it’s a great club with a great fanbase and I think Jack needs to feel that again, feel that he’s loved, feel that the fanbase love him, but also he’s the man to drive them forward.”