Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Isaac Johnson

Man City fans react to Jack Grealish starting XI position vs Leeds as Kevin De Bruyne benched

Manchester City fans have shown their appreciation for Pep Guardiola's decision to play Jack Grealish in midfield against Leeds United.

The England international was nearly always used as an attacking midfielder during his time at Aston Villa. However, Guardiola has largely opted to play him on the left wing.

The Catalan boss made a number of rotational switches for the trip to Elland Road with one eye on Wednesday's Champions League second leg trip to Real Madrid. Unsurprisingly Kevin De Bruyne was named on the bench for the game against Leeds for rest purposes.

READ MORE: Leeds vs Man City LIVE

Instead, Grealish occupied his position alongside Rodri and captain Ilkay Gundogan in midfield. The in-form Gabriel Jesus, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling are named as the front three.

Meanwhile, Ederson has a defence blockade of Joao Cancelo, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake in front of him with Kyle Walker and John Stones injured. Riyad Mahrez, Bernardo Silva, Fernandinho, Zack Steffen and Olek Zinchenko join De Bruyne on the benches as do youngsters CJ Egan-Riley, James McAtee and Luke Mbete.

However, the largest talking point was Grealish reprising his role as a central midfielder. Here is what a number of City fans said about the decision on Twitter.

Sign up to our City newsletter so you never miss an update from the Etihad Stadium this season.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.