We have never grafted our balls off, like Ray Wilkins, but we’re happy with that.
Tim Sherwood brought in Wilkins, the former Manchester United and Chelsea midfielder, into his Aston Villa set-up to add some no-nonsense, say-it-as-you-see-it, heart-on-sleeve, grittiness to a squad he rescued from relegation with his own no-nonsense, say-it-as-you-see-it, heart-on-sleeve, grittiness.
The squad are in Portugal as part of their pre-season preparations and Wilkins likes what he sees in Villa’s 19-year-old midfielder Jack Grealish.
The Ireland Under-21 enjoyed a breakthrough season in the Premier League under Paul Lambert and, in particular, Sherwood. He starred in an FA Cup semi-final win over Liverpool and featured heavily in the league run-in as the club avoided the club.
Doubts linger, however, over his international future [England are hovering] while drunken holiday pictures of Grealish, in Tenerife, saw him jump from newspaper’s back to front pages.
Asked by The Daily Mail about the promising teenager, Wilkins had some succinct advice.
‘To live like a monk. I lived like a monk from 17 probably through to 25. Very little booze and [I] worked.
‘What do you want in life?’ Wilkins continued. ‘The only way you can be a professional footballer is to graft your balls off. If you have that natural talent that Jack has – at 19, he can be fitter than 95% of midfield players – he is a massive asset.’
Considering that Wilkins first captained Chelsea at the age of 18, it may be sage advice worth listening to.
