He said he would take 12 months to make up his mind and Jack Grealish has been good to his word.
After plenty of speculation, the talented Aston Villa midfielder has pledged his international allegiance to England.
— Jack Grealish (@JackGrealish) September 28, 2015
BREAKING NEWS: @JackGrealish1 has made a decision over his international future and opted to play for England. #AVFC pic.twitter.com/AH20hyhuEd
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) September 28, 2015
It was widely reported recently that Roy Hodgson will name the 20-year-old in his squad to face Estonia and Lithuania in England’s upcoming qualifiers.
Whether Hodgson selects him or not depends on international clearance, but Grealish’s club and subsequently the player himself, have confirmed he has chosen the country of his birth over Ireland.
With a 100% record thus far in Group E and qualification for France next summer already secured, England boss Hodgson can afford to experiment with selection and take a chance on Grealish – who played underage with Ireland until taking a break from the Under 21s last September to consider his international future.
Since then the Birmingham native has broken into the Aston Villa team under Tim Sherwood, scoring his first senior goal for the club in the 3-2 defeat to Leicester City earlier this month.
Also in that time Ireland manager Martin O’Neill hailed a “fruitful” meeting with Grealish and his father, but it seems Hodgson is going to reap the harvest.
While Hodgson had described as “tenuous” Grealish’s links to Ireland, the player must still receive international clearance this week before he is free to play for England.
