On February 16, Beijing time, the British "Daily Telegraph" broke the news that Manchester City winger Jack Grealish suffered a groin injury and is expected to be out for 2-3 weeks. This is undoubtedly a loss for Manchester City's frontline.
In the first leg of the Champions League knockout round in midweek, Manchester City won 3-1 away at the Danish Premier League champions to take the lead in the two-legged series. Grealish started the game, but in the 18th minute, Grealish broke through with the ball and was kicked in the leg by Gonzalves, and then could not hold on and was replaced by Doku. After the game, the England winger was diagnosed with a groin injury. Thankfully, Grealish's injury wasn't as serious as other muscle injuries. 2-3 weeks is not too long.
Grealish has been on the rise with injuries this season and has contributed three goals and two assists in 26 games in all competitions for City so far. Last season, Manchester City's stats were 5 goals and 11 assists in 50 games. As his direct rival for the left winger position, Doku has four goals and six assists in 24 games in all competitions. Grealish is now plagued by injuries and is obviously not good news for him to compete for the main team.
City have been without Kevin De Bruyne for a long time this season, and Pep Guardiola has been forced to adopt a more direct attacking approach, with Doku's pace and breakthrough looking more threatening than Grealish's dribbling fouls. However, now that De Bruyne is back from injury and his form has been revealed, Manchester City has begun to focus on control up front as usual, and Grealish still has his own role as the main left winger of Manchester City's European treble.
However, this 2-3 week injury stop Grealish, who is getting better. If he is really out injured for three weeks, it is still unknown whether he will be able to catch up with the Premier League game against Liverpool on March 10. Manchester City won 4-1 at home to Liverpool last season, and Grealish was excellent with a pass and a shot, and his breakthrough on the left flank and his aggressive return to defend were impressive. Without him, City's attack would have lacked more variety.
However, in the long run, if it takes 2-3 weeks to fully heal from the injury, Grealish will still be worth looking forward to this season. After all, Manchester City are still in the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, and there will be more strong conversations and fierce battles in the future. Grealish's technical characteristics and experience in the game will still be of great help to City.