Jack Grealish has spoken out for the first time since burglars targeted his home in a £1 million ‘jewellery raid’ last week.
The distressing incident at the Manchester City and England midfielder’s Cheshire mansion was reported to have taken place while the 28-year-old was in action playing up against Everton in a 3-1 Premier League victory on Boxing Day (Wednesday 27 December), all according to reports in The Sun, and several other reputable publications.
Around 10 members of the footballer‘s extended family were thought to have been inside the property at the time of the distressing incident, it has been reported.
The Birmingham-born player’s parents and long-term girlfriend Sasha Attwood were said to have been among those present in the home watching the match on TV at the time.
Jack Grealish has been targeted by thieves in a £1 million ‘jewellery raid’ at his Cheshire mansion / Credit: Jack Grealish (via Instagram)
The Sun’s reports suggested the family heard noises coming from upstairs, and Grealish‘s dogs soon began barking, prompting the family to subsequently press the property’s panic alarm to alert security and authorities – with police responding shortly after and going on to deploy officers, a dogs unit, and a helicopter.
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Reports have suggested the thieves got away with around £1 million worth of jewellery and watches, but no suspects were said to have been found at the time.
Now, for the first time since the incident, Jack Grealish has broken his silence and taken to Instagram to speak out on the “traumatic experience” his family endured.
Claiming he’d been left “devastated” by the events, the footballer wrote in a statement: “I can’t begin to explain how devastated I am over the burglary that took place at my home a few days ago. My family mean the world to me and nothing is more important than ensuring their safety. This has been a traumatic experience for all of us, I am just so grateful that nobody was hurt.
“I have had so many amazing experiences and achievements over the last 12 months, but to be honest, the best year of my life in football now doesn’t feel like something I can celebrate.
“The people that commit these terrible crimes have no idea of the damage they cause to peoples lives. I hope they are found and brought to justice so no other family has to go through what we have.
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Jack Grealish with his parents, siblings, and girlfriend at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar / Credit: Sasha Rebecca (via Instagram)
“I appreciate the messages from everyone and the support from my friends, teammates, and the club.
“On a more positive note, I’d like to thank everyone for their support throughout this past year, and I wish you and your family a happy 2024.”
The post amassed thousands of supportive comments from members of the public, as well as several of Grealish’s teammates.
Fellow Manchester City players Ederson, Jeremy Doku, Rico Lewis, Manuel Akanji, and Sergio Gomez were among those to comment on the post, as was former Aston Villa teammate John McGinn, and England teammate James Maddison also sent well wishes.
TfGM apologises after two weeks of major tram disruption across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Trams have finally resumed running in Greater Manchester following two weeks of major disruption across the Metrolink network.
Tram services have resumed across the Altrincham, Eccles, and Trafford Park lines this morning (Monday 2 November) following the completion of major track replacement work between Trafford Bar and Deansgate-Castlefield, while maintenance and renewal work also took place on the Eccles line and in the city centre during the planned closure.
Engineers replaced around 4km of track on what is said to be one of the ‘busiest and most complex’ sections of the Metrolink network.
The new track will allow further speed restrictions to be lifted, as according to TfGM, around 100,000 journeys are already benefiting from journey time improvements delivered through previous phases of work every day.
It all forms part of the next phase of the ongoing £150m investment into Greater Manchester’s tram network in a bid to make it ‘safer’ and ‘more resilient and reliable’ for years to come.
✅ This morning, tram services have resumed on the Altrincham, East Didsbury, Eccles, Manchester Airport and Trafford Park lines.
We thank customers for their patience and understanding while these works took place.
↪️ A small service change remains in place through the city centre until the end of service on Wednesday 4 November.
Until then, trams on the Bury – Altrincham, and Victoria – Manchester Airport lines will divert via Exchange Square. Customers may need to change trams to reach Shudehill or Market Street.
👉 Find out more: https://t.co/Vm08ZEDUq4
With services now back up and running, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has issued a statement apologising for disruption.
Ian Davies, who is the Network Director for Metrolink at TfGM, commented: “This was an essential piece of engineering work on one of the busiest parts of our tram network and will help keep services safe, reliable and fit for the future.
“We’re sorry for the disruption and I’d like to thank passengers, residents, and businesses for their patience while we got on with the job.
“The upgrades mean customers will benefit from smoother journeys and allow us to lift further speed restrictions on this section of the network. It will help speed up our journeys and improve reliability for everyone who uses our network.
“Completing work of this scale on time is a significant achievement and I’d like to thank everyone involved for getting it done safely and efficiently.”
Featured Image – TfGM
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Only two arrested after day of ‘peaceful’ protests in Manchester city centre over the weekend
Emily Sergeant
Only two arrests were made following a day of far-right protests and counter demonstrations in Manchester city centre over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said the day passed ‘peacefully’, with smaller numbers of people arriving than expected.
‘Significant’ police resources were in place throughout the day (Saturday 31 October) in order to safely facilitate the demonstrations – which saw an estimated 400 protestors and counter protestors gather around the Albert Square area of the city centre.
The police say they ‘attempted’ to work closely with organisers to ensure people could protest safely, all while wider disruption was kept to a minimum.
Increased ‘stop and search’ powers under Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 were put in place in the city centre to help keep the public safe, but the vast majority of people both sides caused no issues for officers.
Only two people were arrested, but they were later released without charge.
One man was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, and one male counter-protester was arrested on suspicion of robbery following an incident unrelated to the events.
“Our policing operation was designed to balance the right to peaceful protest with the need to keep the city centre safe and moving for everyone else,” commented Assistant Chief Constable, Mark Dexter.
“We also have had to ensure our plans were flexible and resilient so that any ‘flash protests’ in other areas of the city could be dealt with quickly, to minimise disruption and risks to safety in our communities. This plan continues into the remainder of the evening.
“As a result of extensive preparation and the work of officers and partner agencies throughout the day, both groups of demonstrators were able to exercise their rights safely, and we saw no significant disorder.”
Emily Sergeant -
2nd January 2024 
