Matt Maher: The signs were there for Jack Grealish and England

Round here, of course, there was rather more interest or, to be more accurate in the case of some, incredulity.

“Ridiculous” was how Grealish’s former Villa team-mate Gabriel Agbonlahor described it and he will have spoken for many.

Yet while Gareth Southgate’s decision to once more leave Grealish out in the cold is certainly open to question, to describe it as a shock feels a stretch.

After all, the clues were there, just ask Grealish himself.

It was back in February, in these very pages, the Villa skipper admitted he would struggle to push ahead of Raheem Sterling, Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford in the England reckoning.

“What will be hard at the moment is with the position I am playing,” he said. “If you look at England’s wingers, I doubt I would have much of a chance of starting in front of Sterling, Sancho and Rashford, who are all unbelievable players!”

Now six months on, that is precisely the reason Southgate has given for Grealish’s non-selection, citing in particular the emergence of Mason Greenwood, another exciting wide attacker.

Greenwood enjoyed an outstanding finish to the season with Manchester United while Grealish, in truth, struggled to find his best form when the season resumed in mid-June.

The finale, admittedly, was impressive, a man-of-the-match performance against Arsenal followed by the decisive goal as Villa stayed up on the final day at West Ham. Yet in the weeks prior to that, Grealish’s general performances were largely underwhelming and certainly some way short of the level he was reaching earlier in the campaign. Picking on form, Southgate has evidence to justify the call.

It feels fair to wonder whether there weren’t also other factors behind his decision.

Southgate, it is believed, had previously required some convincing Grealish had finally matured and moved on from the lifestyle which caused off-field misdemeanours to blight his early career.

The lockdown breach in late March – an incident which is yet to be concluded in the courts – will not have helped Grealish’s cause. Neither, it needs noting, will the decision to ‘like’ a tweet questioning his omission on Tuesday afternoon.

The counter argument is to point to Maguire’s predicament and Southgate’s decision to name the Manchester United captain in his squad while the trial in Greece was ongoing.

Yet Maguire, unlike Grealish, is an established member of the England set-up, who has built a strong relationship with the manager. Southgate was only able to use the information he had at the time when opting to keep the 27-year-old on board. He was quick enough to reverse his decision, once the verdict came in.

Since his appointment in 2016, Southgate has worked carefully to rebuild the culture around the England camp and the team spirit it has produced has helped make him the national team’s most successful manager in a generation. Such environments are painstakingly produced but easily destroyed. Any concerns Southgate may still have over Grealish’s character, valid or otherwise, must be viewed in that context.

Where his decision-making might be questioned is on pure footballing terms.

Solid as England have been under Southgate, they are not a team blessed with vast reserves of creativity and Grealish, whatever his detractors might claim, certainly offers that. No English player conjured up more chances in the Premier League last season, while the 24-year-old possesses those rarest of qualities in the modern game – the ability to carry the ball long distances and beat a man – which makes him an asset to any team.

Statistically the case for including him in the squad was strong but the numbers only tell half the story and there remains a feeling Grealish, with his near-perfect control and ease on the ball, is the kind of player who needs to be watched in the flesh before his talent can be truly appreciated. That was certainly the predominant view of national journalists, many of whom had not visited Villa during the club’s three years in the Championship, on first witnessing Grealish last season.

Southgate might be justified in claiming he has better options on the wing but that is not the only position Grealish can play. By referencing the fact England ‘do not play with a No.10’ the England boss might be accused of inflexibility. You always need a Plan B. The most pertinent question might be how can he know what Grealish can do or where he might fit in, if he never gives him a chance? Southgate’s record with the Three Lions means his decisions must for now be given the benefit of the doubt but it is results on which they will ultimately be judged.

For Villa supporters, the immediate concern after Tuesday’s announcement was what it might mean for Grealish’s future at their club?

The answer, all told, is probably not much. Receiving an England call-up, or otherwise, was never going to alter the immediate outlook and with Tyrone Mings in the squad, it is not as though playing for Villa is the issue.

Grealish would like to move on and test himself at the highest level but to do that, it will require someone to actually make a bid which meets Villa’s valuation and for all the conjecture and speculation, in a depressed transfer market there has as yet been no indication of that happening.

For now the only thing which can be said with any degree of confidence that Grealish will be showing off his ability somewhere in the Premier League next season, quite possibly still Villa. To show what he can do for England, he may have to wait a good while longer yet.