Jack Grealish questions role of Kepa in Man City winner against Chelsea

Jack Grealish admitted that he expected Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga to gather his low cross which led to Manchester City’s winner at Stamford Bridge.

In a cagey affair in the Premier League on Thursday evening, Grealish’s drilled pass across the six yard box found Riyad Mahrez and he tapped in at the back post to cut the gap between City and Premier League leaders Arsenal to five points.

While it was good play from the two forwards, Chelsea’s supporters lamented Kepa’s lack of effort to deflect the ball clear of danger when it appeared to be well within his reach.

It’s a sentiment that Grealish seemingly agreed with, as he told Sky Sports that he thought the Spaniard was going to cut the cross out before it reached Mahrez at the far post.

“I was speaking to Riyad [Mahrez], and he thought the goalkeeper was going to get it at one point. And so did I. When I crossed it I was thinking Erling [Haaland] has got to be somewhere – I’m just hitting the space. And I asked him ‘where was you’ and he said he pulled back.”

In his post-match interview, Grealish also revealed how difficult he’s found adapting to life at City, stating: “When I came here, I’ll be honest with you, it was so much more difficult than I thought.

“In my head I thought I was going to the team sitting top of the league and I was going to get so many goals and assists and obviously it isn’t the case. A lot of teams tend to sit in against us and that wasn’t the case at Villa.”