The Premier League season is still three days away, but Jack Grealish managed to earn himself an early red card on Tuesday after parking his £220,000 Lamborghini on a double yellow line.
The Manchester City midfielder, a £100million signing for Pep Guardiola’s side in 2021, found himself in hot water for reasons that had nothing to do with football during a night out with girlfriend Sasha Attwood.
Grealish, 27, was treating the influencer to a romantic dinner date at The Ivy, but the night turned sour as they returned to his ice blue 4×4 some three hours later.
The talented footballer was confronted by three traffic wardens after they spotted he was parked on a double yellow – but still managed to avoid an obligatory £60 parking fine.
Ironically the sum is a mere drop in the ocean to Grealish, who earns a reported £15million a year with his Treble winning Premier League club.
Send him off ref: Jack Grealish managed to earn himself an early red card on Tuesday after parking his £220,000 Lamborghini on a double yellow line
Awkward: The talented footballer was confronted by three traffic wardens after they spotted he was parked on a double yellow
Grealish is currently preparing for his third league campaign with city after spending the summer celebrating their historic triumph in the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League – a feat last achieved by local rivals Manchester United in 1999.
Three months before that was captured, the footballer wondered if City were going to win anything at all. And, as they lay second to
He told MailOnline: ‘It was tense. I think if you go back to the international break in March, I was thinking “Are we going to win anything this year?”
‘After that break, especially in April when we drew only one of about nine games, we were unstoppable. The most unstoppable I’ve felt. I just had so much belief.
‘It has been a whirlwind. For the first two or three weeks after I didn’t really take it in. Now it’s been a while and I’ve come to terms with it. They were the best few weeks of my life.’
Grealish spent a chunk of his summer training out in Dubai, in what he says served as preparation for a gruelling trip to Asia in which Pep Guardiola has had to temper the intensity of his sessions given the humidity.
But the footballer believes personalities give City an edge. He struck up an immediate friendship with Erling Haaland when the Norwegian joined – which not everybody expected – and the pair went away to the south of France together during their downtime. The squad, Grealish insisted, is without overpowering ego.
‘I saw Ruben (Dias) mention (Mateo) Kovacic saying he couldn’t believe how close we all are,’ he said. ‘We don’t just say that, it’s the truth. We have such a great group here and hopefully it can continue.
Booked: Grealish (second left) found himself in hot water for reasons that had nothing to do with football during a night out with girlfriend Sasha Attwood (far right)
Trouble brewing: Grealish was treating the influencer to a romantic dinner date at The Ivy, but the night turned sour as they returned to his ice blue 4×4
Free pass: The footballer, who earns a reported £15million a year, somehow managed to avoid an obligatory £60 parking fine
‘Since I’ve been here we’ve had brilliant captains (Fernandinho and Ilkay Gundogan) who keep the team together, going out for meals or other things.
‘We’ve lost Gundo, who was a massive part of us, but you make so many good friends along the way in football and people do come and go.
‘It’s obviously sad but we have a great team and a very strong group.’
Awy from football Grealish has received widespread plaudits for appearing to donate £5,000 to a 20-year-old given only weeks to live.
Young Birmingham City fan Dylan Lamb is battling blood cell cancer and doctors fear he may only have weeks left.
His family organised a £1million appeal on GoFundMe to raise funds for a clinical trial of treatment in America that he needs.
Legendary: Grealish says Manchester City’s Treble celebrations were the best weeks of his life
Good times: His five-week lads’ holiday has finally come to an end after he partied in Istanbul, Ibiza, and Las Vegas before returning to ‘intense’ pre-season training
Success: City swept up all three major trophies last season, with the third coming in last month’s Champions League final against Inter Milan
