For the last three years Grealish has been the name on the lips of everyone at Villa, tipped as a teenager likely to make it big and attracting interest from Chelsea before he made his senior debut. This was only the 19-year-old’s fifth start for the club but he could not have produced a more mature, composed yet streetwise performance. He has the aura of arrogance that all naturally talented footballers possess and there was one piece of skill late in the first half – when he took a high ball down on his instep – that was pure class. Roy Hodgson was in attendance and will surely be campaigning for Grealish to choose England over Ireland.