Jack Grealish previously admitted that he was part of a WhatsApp group chat alongside five fellow Premier League players.
Grealish, 29, was recently excluded from Manchester City’s squad for the 2025 Club World Cup and will likely leave the club this summer.
The England international has been linked with a potential switch to Everton, but his next destination still remains uncertain.
Speaking on his YouTube channel on Friday, former Manchester United star Rio Ferdinand advised Grealish on his next move.
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“He needs to find happiness with himself playing football, but also within a team,” Ferdinand said.
“I don’t think any players are happy when they’re not playing, especially the player that’s used to being the star man in their team since he was a kid.
“He’d have been star man so to think that he’s now not even being considered for big moments and big games… he needs to go where he’s going to play and he’s going to find happiness.”
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He added: “Because at the end of your career, yes, you do want trophies, but at the same time you want to be happy doing that, you want to feel a part of it. I want to see that smile and that swagger and that enjoyment factor when he plays football again, and I don’t think we’ve seen it for a while.”
And could one of his friends in the ‘Avengers’ group chat put a word in for him at their respective clubs?
Spurs’ James Maddison, Aston Villa duo Ross Barkley and John McGinn, Como's Dele Alli and Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell were all in a WhatsApp group chat in 2020, as reported by The Sun.
When asked who is the most vocal in the group chat during an interview with UMM in 2021, Grealish said: “Me or Madders. On that point (Maddison) is on the group chat 24/7. Someone writes in it and then bam, he's ready straight away. Constantly in there.
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“Then there's people like Chilly (Ben Chilwell), he'd be online and he wouldn't read it.”
He added: “It was when we went to Dubai last year on that winter break. Have you watched the film Avengers? I haven't. But that's like loads of people or something, like a group?
“I didn't even know that (the Avengers film is an elite group of individuals). I don't even know who put it together actually.”
Topics: Jack Grealish, Premier League, Football, Transfers, James Maddison, Rio Ferdinand, Manchester City
Luke Davies