I gave Jack Grealish his Aston Villa debut – I had to pull him aside after awkward gaffe, his response blew me away

FORMER Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert has revealed that he used to “worry” about Jack Grealish.

Lambert, 54, spent three years with the Villans between 2012 and 2015.

EMPICS SportPaul Lambert admitted he was stunned by Grealish’s response to a ‘misdemeanour’[/caption]

ReutersJack Grealish made his Aston Villa debut at the age of 18[/caption]

Shortly after he arrived at the club, then-16-year-old Grealish was promoted to the first team.

However, the winger was not deemed ready for the Premier League and subsequently went out on loan to Notts County.

After returning from Meadow Lane, Grealish established himself in Lambert’s squad.

However, the manager was forced to pull him aside on one occasion to discuss a “misdemeanour”.

Recalling the incident during an exclusive interview with Ladbrokes Fanzone, Lambert admitted that he was stunned by the winger’s response.

He said: “Jack always had a side to him in his locker which we all know about. He would sometimes try and push the wrong kind of buttons with me, but I’d seen it all before, so I knew the pitfalls.

“You’re swimming with sharks at times, as a football manager, and I didn’t want him to go off the rails, because I could see a huge talent there. 

“One week I had to pull him into the office for a misdemeanour, which was fine in the end. I’m not going to say what that misdemeanour was, but the biggest takeaway from it was his response.

“He was only a baby really, in footballing terms, at the time. You’ve got to remember that as a manager; it’s about how you nurture talents like that.

“I did worry for him a little bit, at a young age. That’s not through any fault of his own, though; that’s just the way the environment is when you’re young… it can derail you, but I just didn’t want to see him – or any young kid – derail.

“Especially when you’ve got such a talent like Jack; when your career is finished, you want people to talk about your antics on the pitch, not off it. 

“I’d seen it first hand, so many times; I played with plenty of young kids who I’d probably say were more talented than myself, but for some reason or another, just never made it.

“I didn’t want that to happen to Jack. I always knew the talent was there; what’s important for Jack is that he’s managed by someone who can keep him on the straight and narrow, and he’s in a great place right now in that sense, with Pep Guardiola at Man City.”

Grealish left Aston Villa in 2021 to join Manchester City in a record-breaking £100million transfer.

He has since made 112 appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side.

The winger has also amassed 35 senior England caps.