Calvin Phillips pours vodka into Manchester City teammate Jack Grealish's mouth. Photo: AFP/Oli Scarff. some of the game's past – like muddy pitches, chubby referees and reasonable start times – though Jack Grealish single-handedly decided to change that this week in a city that's a trademark of 24-hour party people.
Trophy-hungry Manchester City will one day be able to piece together the aftermath of Saturday's Champions League final win from a wealth of video evidence. Here he is pouring champagne down his neck. There he forces someone to do it for him. Calvin Philips drips vodka into Grealish's mouth on stage in front of thousands. Where did Grealish get the reflective jacket from? And where will he go next?
It arrived at St. George's Park on Tuesday evening: from Istanbul to Manchester via Ibiza, on to East Staffordshire and then on to Malta, it's a Greek odyssey like no other. At some point on Friday night at the national stadium in Ta'Cali, he might even play football.
Grealish's appeal lies in the absence of any attempt to create an image that hides his true self. If he does not know the meaning of the word “encyclopedic”, then he will say it right away, in the middle of the interview. If his team wins the European Cup, he will celebrate like a Sunday league footballer, although he has the funds to charter a private jet to Ibiza locally. There are also not many Sunday league players who can boast the kind of physique that Grealish showed when he took off his shirt on the open-top bus that took his team through the streets of Manchester in the pouring rain.
Let him have some fun now , because the way FIFA and UEFA divide the football calendar, there may soon be a time when elite players get lucky if they get one day off at the end of the season.
Jack Grealish rushed to the Treble celebration at Manchester City. Photo: Getty Images/Oli Scarff
The fame and fortune of soccer players means that they tend to drink sparingly. This often happens in Mayfair bars, where vodka is bought by the bottle and bar bills can cost a family car. In times past, when beer was mostly served at room temperature in glasses with handles, Bobby Moore, the England captain who won the World Cup, was signed by the pub marketing board to extol the virtues of the trip to the locals. A heavy drinker myself, this might have seemed a bit awkward to the participants. However, football's attitude towards drinking has always been problematic and tends to be extreme.
Now it has changed to the point that many footballers seek to make their abstinence a virtue. The game is so demanding, the rewards for success are so great, and the stories of those who are addicted to it so vivid that some have decided that there is no middle ground.
The game itself could not be determined. We love drunken players for their unbridled fun and their human authenticity. We hate drunkards for sabotaging careers and squandering talents. How many drinks are not enough? How much is too much?
Cristiano Ronaldo, whose late father suffered from alcoholism, is the supreme prince of the teetotaler. There are other teetotalers such as Jordan Henderson and James Milner as well as many practicing Muslims who play the game. Grealish's teammate Ilkay Gundogan won't be queuing up to pour a drink down his teammate's throat. Of course, there are many losses in the game. Jimmy Greaves, George Best and Paul Gascoigne are among the giants of British football who can evade just about any opponent except licensed premises.
Grealish's joy in the past few days has been a source of amusement. The unrecovered British lad landed on one of the greatest teams in the history of the game, ditching the restraint normally expected of established players and just having fun. There's nothing wrong with that.
Grealish's Joy has appealed to many fans across the country. Photo: Getty Images/Tom Flaters
On the other hand, some of Grealish's drunken moments were less instructive. The total crash on the road while on a teenage holiday in Tenerife, or that crash three years ago at the Solihull dead end where two parked cars collided and witnesses reported that Grealish smelled like booze and was wearing the wrong slippers. There is no doubt that someone at City has been following him closely lately.
However, the game is now taken very seriously. Football players are required to have views on a wide range of topics and offer more guidance to youth than was once expected from a local priest.
As for their professionalism, there is no doubt that it is much higher than ever before. Most players start their own pre-season programs before returning to their clubs. Many are already on holiday in places like the south of Portugal preparing with personal trainers for the 2023-24 season.
Greish also knows that with more success and lavish celebrations comes more scrutiny. No one watches their players more closely than top managers and Pep Guardiola is at the top of that pile. He will let his Englishman celebrate and then expect him to respond appropriately when the new season rolls around.
Aston Villa, Grealish's pre-City life club, was formed by abstinent Wesleyans who encouraged their players not to drink. . Almost 150 years have passed, and the game is floating in things – the halls of the stadium, the surrounding pubs and constant advertising. The players themselves are under such scrutiny that they dare not participate in any other activities except on special occasions. It certainly was for City and Grealish and then they went back to their day job.
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