Paul Scholes: I really like the look of Jack Grealish. He has promise. I just hope he chooses England!

COLUMN: Writing exclusively for The Independent, Paul Scholes offers his view on the Aston Villa youngster

Grealish has been pictured appearing to inhale nitrous oxide (Getty Images)

I had the same options as Jack Grealish when it came to international football, in fact I could have played for Northern Ireland as well as the Republic. On my mum Marie’s side, my Nana was from the Republic of Ireland and my Granddad was from the north. Lots of families in Manchester have strong Irish connections but it never occurred to me to play for anyone other than England.

I really like Grealish as a player. He has got promise. I haven’t seen enough of him to know whether he is a No 10 or better coming off the left-hand side. Only time will tell how many goals he has in him. Only time will tell if he is going to pull his socks up, too. Juan Sebastian Veron had that habit as well.

But what I can see in Grealish is that he is a clever player. He has great control, he can dribble and he can pass. He might well have a free-kick in him too. Let’s not go overboard yet. There are the makings of a decent player there.

Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish (Getty Images)

What I don’t understand is why he has taken time off from international football. You need to start playing international football first before you think about taking time off. I guess it is about giving himself time to choose between Ireland and England. The Republic will always need him more but England is where he will play at the higher level. The fact that he is prepared to take his time probably tells you he is a confident boy.

Scholes’ week: What caught my eye

Man of the week

Christian Benteke. Excellent in Sunday’s semi-final. Great performance, great goal.

Moment of the week

Neymar’s goal against PSG. Iniesta takes the ball on and plays him in. Brilliant.

Match of the week

Bayern 6-1 Porto. The great teams can always rescue a bad situation.

Manager of the week

Pep Guardiola. Team doctor walks out, pressure on, yet he gets the result.