The father of Aston Villa winger Jack Grealish has revealed that Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill has wished his son the best for his England career.
The 20-year-old announced on Monday that he intends to represent England rather than Ireland at international level, despite having played for the Irish at Under-21 level.
Kevin Grealish has insisted that son Jack only made the decision on his future within the past few days, after meeting both O'Neill and England boss Roy Hodgson earlier in the year.
"Martin was the first person I phoned yesterday morning," he told the Irish Mirror. "We only knew for sure in the last few days so it was important Martin heard it first from us. In fairness to him, while he was disappointed, Martin wished Jack all the best in his future career.
"Jack had a lot of thinking to do after meeting both Martin and Roy Hodgson during the summer. It wasn't myself, his agent or his Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood who made this decision. We all gave Jack the time and space to choose for himself and we'll support him in his decision.
"Twice in the past Jack turned down the chance of switching to England at underage level. But he was only a kid then and we agreed together that staying with Ireland was the best decision in both cases. This situation was completely different. Jack is now 20 and should be making his own decisions, especially as it impacts on the rest of his career."
Grealish is now awaiting clearance from FIFA.
Steven Toplis
