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Inside the six-year tug of war for Jack Grealish: The £100m winger was within Ireland's grasp - and Roy Keane was even sent to to convince him - but now he's reaping the rewards of being England's maverick star

It could well have been Guinness and not vodka that Jack Grealish was necking during Manchester City’s treble-winning parade.

On the wall of the family home in Birmingham, there still hangs a picture of a 17-year-old Grealish - the boys with the man’s calves - in the colours of Republic of Ireland, the country of three of his grandparents.

In 2015, then Ireland boss Martin O’Neill and his assistant Roy Keane took great encouragement from the sight of the framed memento as they sat down for talks with the player and his father, Kevin.