Gareth Southgate changed his mind on Jack Grealish after 'brutally honest' remark

Gareth Southgate has made some bold choices for his England squad selection for the Euros, with the notable exclusion of Jack Grealish being a major talking point.

The £100million Manchester City ace, who was part of the Three Lions' Euro 2020 and 2022 World Cup squads, was one of the most high-profile players to be denied a seat on the plane to Germany this summer.

This comes despite Southgate's previous admissions of being a "huge fan" of Grealish, even when the ex-Aston Villa player hasn't been at his best, which was arguably the case throughout the 2023/24 season. However, the England boss acknowledged that Grealish is often "brutally honest" about his own performances, a trait that can negatively impact his form and confidence.

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"Sometimes I think he's too hard on himself," Southgate remarked after England's 1-0 victory over Australia in October.

He went on to praise Grealish as a "fabulous talent" and mentioned that having players like him and James Maddison, who was also left out of the squad, can be beneficial as they "see the world differently".

Eight months on and both Grealish and Maddison find themselves excluded from the team. Explaining his decision, Southgate stated: "We're blessed with options in attacking areas, all offering something slightly different. Madders and Jack give us something different as well, so they're tough calls.

"We've gone over it and over it as staff to try and be fair. We back our decisions but we recognise we could have gone a different route. Both boys are big characters and great to work with."

Grealish has earned 36 caps for England but has only played in two of the last six matches for the Three Lions. Southgate has a wealth of attacking options at his disposal, with Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon, Eberechi Eze and Jarrod Bowen ultimately getting the nod for the Euros.

After learning he had been omitted from the squad, Maddison expressed his disappointment on X, before wishing the team well at the tournament. "Devastated doesn't quite cut it," he wrote.

"Trained well and worked hard all week but if I'm honest with myself, my form for Spurs when coming back from injury in the second half of the season probably wasn't at the levels I had set which gave Gareth a decision to make.

"I still thought there would be a space for me in a 26-man squad as I feel I bring something different and had been a mainstay in this whole qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 in Germany but the manager has made the decision and I have to respect that.

"I'll be back, I have no doubt. Wishing the boys all the luck in the world out in Germany, unbelievable group and lads that I literally call some of my best friends. I genuinely hope football comes home."

This was stated by a player who did not make it into the final squad alongside Harry Maguire, Jarrad Branthwaite, Curtis Jones, James Trafford and Jarell Quansah.