'He's not fit' - Pep Guardiola seething with Lee Carsley over Jack Grealish's England call-up as Man City boss sarcastically claims 'he knows better than me'

After the England squad was announced on Thursday, many were surprised at the inclusion of Grealish, who has missed Man City's last five competitive matches through an hamstring injury. Asked about whether he believed it a good idea for Grealish to join up with the national team, Guardiola comprehensively disagreed.

Grealish's last competitive game came in mid-October against Wolves. It is unclear whether he picked up his injury during the match, or in a training session following it, but the nature of the problem was severe enough to keep him out of big games against Tottenham and Sporting CP, both of which City lost.

Prior to his injury, the winger was being used in rotation with Jeremy Doku, and as a result he has completed a full 90 minutes on just two occasions this season, providing two assists but failing to score so far. However, he did net in England's most recent outing, a 3-1 win away to Finland, and generally impressed during the October international break, which has perhaps led to Carsley picking him once again despite injury.

Asked about Grealish's inclusion in Carsley's recently released squad in a press conference, Guardiola responded: "It's a question for the England manager - I'm not involved. They can select who they want.

"Jack trained today (Friday) and believes he can help us - I'm not the guy to say you cannot go (on international duty). But for my team, he's not fit. He cannot play. All I can say is that for a couple of days over two weeks he didn't train but the people from England believe he can help them. So go.

"They can select who they want. All I’d say is the day after Wolves, he was injured, 17 days out and today [Friday] was the first training with the team."

Guardiola sarcastically added: "The manager from the UK knows batter than me."

The Catalan also claimed that the City medical department "hasn't told me they have spoke" with their England counterparts, although the English FA has released a statement confirming they did consult Manchester City doctors.

Guardiola's City will travel to Brighton for Saturday's 5.30pm (GMT) kick-off without Grealish, and are looking to avoid their fourth-straight defeat in all competitions. A weakened side without the presence of John Stones and Ruben Dias in central defence, City face a stern test against in-form Brighton, who have already beaten Newcastle, Tottenham and Manchester United in a stellar start to the season under new coach Fabian Hurzeler.

England play their first game of the international break against Greece, who shockingly defeated the Three Lions at Wembley in September. Grealish is not forecasted to be fully fit for this first game, but could be available for the second fixture of the break, which sees England take on his ancestral homeland Ireland - a game the winger will be desperate to take part in.