JACK Grealish was allegedly slapped in the face by a Manchester United fan at Old Trafford.
The Man City star, 29, was apparently assaulted near the tunnel as he made his way off the pitch following the Manchester derby on Sunday.
Grealish was the victim of a violent encounter in 2019, when a Birmingham City fan stormed the pitch and clobbered him from behind – sending the then-Villa player sprawling onto the turf.
A 20-year-old man has been charged with assault following Sunday’s alleged attack.
He will appear at Manchester Magistrates’ Court in July.
Both Man City and Man United are yet to make public comment on the incident, though police are understood to have immediately launched a probe following reports of the assault yesterday.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said: “Alfie Holt, 20, of Haven Drive, Droylsden, has been charged with assault.
“He will appear at Manchester Magistrates Court.
“This charge relates to an incident which took place at Old Trafford Football Club yesterday.”
Grealish started on the bench for City, but came on for Ilkay Gundogan in the 74th minute of the clash.
The alleged slap comes after sections of the United crowd chanted “Phil Foden, your mum is a s**g” during the drab draw.
City manager Pep Guardiola blasted fans for the vile song.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Pitch invader punches Jack Grealish in the middle of Birmingham City vs Aston Villa” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6012173404001″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]Speaking after the game, he said: “It was a lack of class.
“We are so exposed in football — managers, owners and football players especially.”
He added: “I don’t understand the mind of the people involving the mum of Phil.
“It’s a lack of integrity, class, and they should be ashamed.”
Foden has also issued a three-word message on social media.
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D111473%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]“We keep going,” the Man City star wrote alongside five photos of himself from the match.
Fans flocked to the comments to offer the midfielder some support, with one person writing: “Don’t mind the haters Phil every great person has haters we keep going.”
While another said: “We are with you.”
It comes after cops promised an increased police presence in the city over the weekend.
Chief Superintendent Colette Rose, head of Special Operations at GMP and Gold Commander for the Manchester derby, earlier said: “We are lucky in Manchester to have clubs with passionate fan bases represented across all football leagues – a Manchester derby especially always brings excitement as the city unites in its passions for football.
“There is a policing plan in place for Sunday – fans will notice an increased police presence in busier locations and specialist officers will be deployed to ensure fans remain safe and can enjoy the match.
“We want everyone to enjoy the match – anyone with concerns can report them to a police officer or a member of security staff on the day.”
Birmingham City fan Phil Mitchell, then 27, was jailed for 14 weeks in 2019 after admitting thumping Grealish during the clash with Aston Villa.
Mitchell said he launched the attack as a “joke” because he thought Grealish was “a k***”.
In a tragic twist, the footy fan was then found dead in 2023 aged 32.
His body was discovered at an address in Birmingham, and he was later described by family as having “the kindest heart”.
