With his back to his manager, Jack Grealish stood no more than a couple of yards away from Pep Guardiola and knew what was coming.
That his number was the third of three to be lit up by the fourth official was almost cruel - the hook had been inevitable after as ineffective a performance as the £100million recruit has put in for Manchester City. And having failed to score or assist in 35 of his 44 matches for Guardiola’s team, that is saying something.
His contribution against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night was an hour of predictability from a player who should be all about unpredictability. And that is a problem for Grealish and Guardiola … but not for Gareth Southgate and England.
