Jack Grealish, now the most expensive British footballer of all-time, has been pictured getting the train to London with his new Manchester City team-mates after joining the club for £100million.
Grealish, 25, officially completed the move to Premier League champions City on Thursday, having put pen to paper on a six-year deal worth £230,000-a-week in the standout blockbuster switch of the summer.
And it hasn’t taken long for him to be thrust straight into the action, with City to compete for the first trophy of the year against Leicester in the Community Shield.
Jack Grealish has been seen getting the train to London with his Manchester City team-mates
Former Aston Villa talisman Grealish, who emotionally parted ways with his boyhood club, revealed that winning silverware was the driving force behind him joining City, and their opening game may allow him to do just that.
It is likely he will play a part in the clash at Wembley this weekend, and Pep Guardiola’s squad and coaching staff were seen boarding their train to head down to the capital on Friday afternoon.
Grealish was with the group, and looked to be enjoying his conversation with Benjamin Mendy as he settles in. One photo shows a City supporter asking their newest arrival for a signature, before the train then left.
Grealish was with City’s squad less than a day after officially joining the club for £100million
Record signing Grealish looked to be enjoying a chat with Benjamin Mendy at the train station
Grealish was seen leaving City’s headquarters yesterday as he closed in on the move, and Sportsmail revealed on Wednesday that the playmaker had started his medical after the club activated a clause in his contract.
With both parties working through the formalities of the jaw-dropping switch, Grealish was escorted around City’s training complex in the back of a large black van – and was subsequently photographed.
The interest from City has been evident over recent months, with Sportsmail reporting in March that they were favourites to sign Grealish. The official talks began last week, and the full £100m clause fee was paid in full on Friday.
Opening up on the move, Grealish admitted he felt ‘over the moon’ and described joining City as ‘massive’. He also went on to highlight his ambitions to be successful with the club, and the impact of boss Guardiola.
Grealish will wear the No 10 shirt and his move is the blockbuster switch of the summer so far
After holding his first interviews, Grealish said he moved to City to win the biggest trophies
‘It was obviously a difficult few months because I have been an Aston Villa fan for my whole life, but when I spoke to the manager here and you see what type of players they have got here, in the end it was something I couldn’t say no to,’ he said.
‘I am absolutely delighted to be here. Trophies are the main reason why I joined. There are obviously a lot of reasons why I decided to come here.
‘The manager has been a massive factor; playing under the best manager in the world was something I couldn’t really turn down.
‘Obviously the players that we have got here, I think everyone knows how much I admire Kevin [De Bruyne].
Grealish posed alongside Txiki Begiristain after signing the bumper £230,000-a-week deal
Pep Guardiola was also name-dropped by Grealish as another factor behind his hefty transfer
‘It is going to become a dream come true to play alongside him. But competing for trophies is something that I wanted to do. It was something I couldn’t turn down.’
Guardiola appears to have been left equally delighted after snapping up Grealish, having uploaded a photo on Instagram showing him speaking to the new signing in his office. Naturally, the post sent followers into a frenzy.
Around 60,000 likes flooded in within just 30 minutes of the upload going live, and the caption simply read: ‘Welcome @jackgrealish #mancity’.
Guardiola’s Instagram post of him and new boy Grealish talking had gained a huge response
Villa were desperate for Grealish to stay, and even offered him a new deal, barely 11 months on from when he had penned his previous one. They also outlined their objective to challenge for the top six this season.
Grealish returned from his holiday in Dubrovnik at the start of the week and, by resuming training, remained respectful. He held talks with sporting director Johan Lange, as well as chief executive Christian Purslow and chairman Nassef Sawiris.
He made 213 appearances for Villa since making his debut in May 2014, scoring 32 goals and picking up 43 assists.