Jack Grealish defended by former Aston Villa teammate Gabby Agbonlahor as Man City fan fumes at Pep Guardiola to bench him and start Phil Foden instead after no-show in Everton draw

Gabby Agbonlahor has again leapt to the defence of Jack Grealish after a Manchester City fan begged Pep Guardiola to drop him.

The former Aston Villa star was a part of the City side that was held to a 1-1 draw by Everton at the Etihad Stadium.

As a result, Pep Guardiola’s title hopes are fading fast with Arsenal looking unstoppable on current form.

Guardiola made full use of his first team squad and started with the likes of Rico Lewis, Nathan Ake, Riyad Mahrez and Grealish in his XI, leaving Kyle Walker, Joao Cancelo, Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez on the bench.

But despite being held at 1-1, it was the 87th minute before Ilkay Gundogan, England star Foden and World Cup winner Alvarez were brought onto the pitch.

It was a disappointing display from the entire Man City team against Frank Lampard’s Toffees, but Grealish’s £100million price tag means he has a target on his back.

However, in truth, it was a poor display from the England playmaker who failed to create any chances for his side.

One Man City supporter, Jack, called talkSPORT’s Gameday Phone-In with Jamie O’Hara and Gabby Agbonlahor, and he was not in a good mood.

As part of a lengthy rant about Guardiola’s late substitutions, he took aim at Grealish and insisted enough is enough.

He told talkSPORT: “Jack Grealish, don’t get me started on him.

“Start Phil Foden. Please Pep, just start Phil Foden.

“Foden is the most talented young player in this country and he leaves him on the bench until there’s three minutes to go.

“I’ve had enough!”

However, responding to the criticism of his friend and former Aston Villa teammate, Agbonlahor came to Grealish’s defence.

The former Villa captain said: “I thought Jack did well.

“I think Mahrez was poor. I would have brought Foden on for Mahrez earlier.

“But it’s Pep [who is to blame], he makes his subs too late.”

It’s not the first time Agbonlahor has stuck up for Grealish amid strong criticism of his City performances.

Earlier this year, fellow talkSPORT host Jamie O’Hara compared it to when Roy Keane defends ‘his pal’ Cristiano Ronaldo and admitted Grealish is not proving value for money.

“Jack Grealish is a great player, but he’s not producing – it’s as simple as that,” said the former Tottenham midfielder.

“I really like Jack, I’ve got nothing against him, but he keeps getting subbed off early in games, he’s not scoring goals and he’s not getting assists.

“You’re paying £100m for a player who isn’t performing. I’m only saying what I see.”