Jack Grealish could not hide his delight with one of his former teammates after Aston Villa boosted Manchester City’s title chances.
The Villans beat Arsenal 2-0 at the Emirates to give Man City the upper hand in the Premier League title race, and Grealish took to social media to display his gratitude to his old club.
Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland notched his 20th goal of the campaign as the Man City thrashed Luton to return to the top of the table
Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland notched his 20th goal of the campaign as the Man City thrashed Luton to return to the top of the tableCredit: Getty
Ollie Watkins secured victory for Villa as he struck in the 87th-minute after Leon Bailey gave them the lead, with the win keeping City top of the table ahead of Mikel Arteta’s side, having leapfrogged the Gunners a day before with a 5-1 demolition of Luton.
After the match, Watkins celebrated the result by posting a series of photos from the game, alongside the caption: “A lot of people doubting me this year, I only use it as motivation.”
And the England striker’s actions went down a treat with Sky Blues star Grealish, who showed his appreciation for his former side’s top scorer in the comments section.
The ex Villa captain replied to Watkins’ post with two top emojis and a sky-blue heart, appearing to acknowledge his international teammate’s contribution to City’s title bid.
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This was not the striker’s only role in the post-match drama, as he also fired a cheeky response to talkSPORT’s Troy Deeney on his Instagram story, after he had previously said he was ‘unconvinced’ by Watkins.
It is no surprise that Grealish was in a jubilant mood after the day’s events, as his team had enjoyed a comfortable victory before watching both of their title rivals drop points.
Having sat third in the table heading into the weekend, the defending champions opened up a two-point gap over Arsenal and Liverpool with their thrashing of Luton in the Saturday fixture.
Second-half goals from Mateo Kovacic, Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Josko Gvardiol on top of an early own-goal from Daiki Hashioka meant that City were able to watch with joy as Liverpool suffered a shock 1-0 home defeat to Crystal Palace the next day.
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A delighted Watkins took to Instagram to rejoice in his side’s victoryCredit: Credit: @olliewatkins Instagram
Former Aston Villa skipper Grealish could be seen celebrating Watkin’s role in Villa’s win in the comments sectionCredit: Credit: @olliewatkins instagram
And a perfect weekend for Pep Guardiola’s side was rounded off when Arsenal were beaten by Villa, with the former having had the chance to regain top spot with a win.
Grealish was not the only person connected with the Sky Blues to celebrate the shift in the title race, as diehard fan Liam Gallagher rejoiced in the turn of events with a series of expletive social media posts.
City’s return to the top of the Premier League table is a huge boost to their hopes of repeating of the historic treble which they achieved in the previous campaign.
As well as battling for an unprecedented fourth consecutive Premier League title, the Citizens remain in the hunt for both the FA Cup and Champions League crowns which they currently hold.
Guardiola’s group now enter a decisive week in their bid to defend both titles, starting with the return leg of their European quarter-final tie against Real Madrid, before their weekend FA Cup semi-final clash with Chelsea.
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