Jack Grealish: “I didn’t expect so much abuse from Ireland fans”

It's close to a year since Jack Grealish finally arrived at a decision on his international future.

The Aston Villa starlet bounced between England, the country in which he was born, and the Republic of Ireland, the country that he represented at underage level, for the previous 12 months before opting for the former in September, 2015. Having spoken to both Martin O'Neill and then-England manager Roy Hodgson, Grealish decided to declare for his native country and he is not being allowed to forget about it. Some disgruntled Irish fans felt let down and strung along by the winger and have aggressively let him know about it on social media. The 20-year-old has opened up on the difficulty of the decision for the first time and admitted that he's been surprised by the amount of vitriol that's been hurled at him. “It was a big decision and wasn’t easy for me," Grealish said in an interview with the Daily Telegraph. "I thought about it for a long time, spoke with my family and my agent, but in the end it came from me. “I didn’t think it was going to be so big, I didn’t expect so much abuse from Ireland fans. I was still getting it during the Euro’s! “But for my career I think if I fulfil my ability I feel I can play for England in years to come. I was born here, as were my parents, so I felt more English than Irish. “I played for England at the Toulon Tournament and that was a great experience. I didn’t really have a winning feeling last season so to play four of the five games, and score twice, ended it on a good note. “A cap for the under-21s is the next target. There’s a qualifier in September and I want to try and be involved in that.” The progress of Grealish, who has been backed for big things for some time now, stalled last season when he was ordered to train with Villa's U21 side after deciding to go clubbing following a Premier League defeat to Everton. He also came in for flak after being pictured seemingly passed out while on holiday in Tenerife months earlier. But he maintains that his days of slipping up are behind him and that he's matured since his behaviour last season. “We all make mistakes when we’re young but you won’t be seeing me do any of that again," he continued. “I felt like a kid last summer and in February last year, before Tim Sherwood came in, nobody would have known who I was. I didn’t realise what the attention would be like, I just thought I’d go on holiday like all young lads do. “I look back on it now and as a professional footballer you can’t do that sort of thing. We’re supposed to be role models for kids.”