Jack Grealish's WhatsApp group with James Maddison could be brought out of the archives amid reports Tottenham are interested in signing the Manchester City star. The 29-year-old has found himself on the fringes at the Etihad Stadium this season.
He's managed just 605 minutes of game time in what has been a frustrating campaign all round for the Citizens. Pep Guardiola has consistently favoured Savinho, Jeremy Doku, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva in wide areas, leaving Grealish struggling for opportunities.
Following City's 2-1 FA Cup quarter-final victory over Bournemouth at the weekend, the England international appeared to take a subtle swipe at his limited playing time. Despite being a regular in City's FA Cup squad, Grealish was benched for Sunday's game.
However, he came on in the 69th minute to replace Foden. This marked his first appearance since a brief substitute role against Spurs on February 27.
After the match, he posted on Instagram, seemingly referencing his lack of minutes: "Was nice to finally be back out there. Away support was incredible… Wembley next."
Although Grealish has enjoyed a trophy-laden spell at City, winning three Premier League titles and the Champions League, he'll need regular football to reclaim his place in the England squad, having been left out of Thomas Tuchel's first Three Lions squad this month.
His omission was both notable and justified, and with the World Cup looming next year, he may be looking for a fresh start. One potential destination is Spurs, who have been linked with the dynamic forward, with GiveMeSport claiming they've shown interest in recent weeks.
Back in 2018, a move to North London seemed imminent following Aston Villa’s play-off final loss to Fulham, with both Tottenham and Arsenal eyeing him up. However, he remained at his boyhood club and helped them achieve promotion before later securing a £100million switch to City.
A move to Spurs would reunite him with Maddison, a close friend and fellow member of a WhatsApp group named 'The Avengers.' The chat, which includes Dele Alli, Ben Chilwell, Ross Barkley, and John McGinn, was revealed by Maddison in an interview with former Hull City midfielder David Meyler.
"We have a little group chat called The Avengers," Maddison admitted. Grealish, in a 2021 interview with UMM's Assumptions, confirmed that he and Maddison were the most active members. "Me or Madders," he said.
"On that point, [Maddison] is on the group chat 24/7. Someone writes in it and then bam, he's ready straight away. Constantly in there. Then there's people like Chilly, he'd be online and he wouldn't read it."
Grealish, who is reportedly earning £300,000 per week at City, could be a challenging acquisition for Spurs, given their structured wage policy, which might make such a transfer difficult to execute.