Miguel Almiron has reached out with heartwarming offer for Jack Grealish after the Manchester City winger's crass attempt to mock the Paraguayan international.
The £100million wide-man was filmed drunkenly claiming his team-mate Riyad Mahrez was 'playing like Almiron' before he was substitued against Aston Villa on the final day of last season, with the intention behind it to insult the Algerian international. Grealish surely could not have predicted the upturn in form that the Newcastle forward would go on to enjoy the following campaign.
Boasting both the current player and goal of the month accolades, the 28-year-old netted seven goals in eight games - more than the four goals Grealish has to his name in a year-and-a-half at the Etihad.
Despite this, Almiron is no mood to laud his stellar form over the struggling Grealish's head.
"I’m not interested in that," he recently admitted. "Jack’s a great player and I will always wish him all the best. He’s at Manchester City for good reason. I just avoid making any comparisons. It’s about me focusing on what I do. It’s no big deal."
He also opened up on how he felt when the footage first circulated, telling MailSport: "I didn’t pay a lot of attention, I was on holiday with my family. And I didn’t have a mobile phone signal! So no, I didn’t watch the video. I wasn’t bothered."
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In the interest of balance, it should be made clear Grealish has since held his hands up and swallowed some pride surrounding the comments.
"When I said earlier that sometimes I do stupid stuff, that was one," Grealish said in an interview during England's World Cup campaign. "I regret that.
"I swear, I’m actually buzzing the way he’s reacted. He said something about me in the interview the other day, he wished me the best. I thought ‘what a guy, man’ because if that was me and somebody had said that about me, I’d have probably been the other way and been like ‘f*** it’."
Almiron has now responded to Grealish's climb down, insisting he harbours no ill-feeling towards the England international.
"I saw the interview and heard that he spoke positively about me," the St. James' Park favourite claimed. "I’ve never had anything against Jack and have maintained all along that I think he’s a great player and a good guy.
"There’s never been any issue for me. It was a nice interview and the fact he spoke the way he did, that reinforces the type of person he is."
Almiron showed his class, having been asked how he would react if he were to come face-to-face with Grealish, he replied: "I would shake his hand, no problem."
This surely puts to bed any faint rumours of a feud between the pair after Grealish's tipsy trouble-making.
