England manager Gareth Southgate has told Jack Grealish that he may not get a chance at international level unless he plays regularly in the Premier League.
The Aston Villa midfielder has seven caps for England at under-21 level but has not yet received a call-up for the senior squad.
With Callum [Hudson-Odoi], he's playing Europa League, he's playing Premier League - that does make a difference.
Gareth Southgate
He last played in the top flight for Villa in 2016 but they have failed to win promotion since, losing in the Championship play-off final last season.
Grealish was then linked with a move away from Villa Park, Tottenham making bids that were rejected in the summer. The midfielder then pledged his future to Villa, signing a new five-year contract.
However, Southgate says that, if he is to achieve his international ambitions, Grealish will have to either get promoted with Villa or seek a move to a Premier League club.
The England boss said: "Although we can see the quality, when the evidence of the opponent is a different level, that's where it's hard to directly correlate what that's going to look like at a level above.
"With Callum [Hudson-Odoi], he's playing Europa League, he's playing Premier League - that does make a difference."
Southgate added that, as an ex-Villa player himself, he hoped to see Grealish and the club back in the top flight before too long.
Meanwhile Southgate is preparing his side to face Montenegro away in the Euro 2020 qualifiers on Monday night.
His side top Group A after starting their campaign with a 5-0 win at home to the Czech Republic on Friday, Raheem Sterling scoring a hat-trick.
They are 1/3 for the win on Monday with Montenegro 10/1 and the draw 7/2.
Sterling is 15/8 to score at any time on Monday while England are 7/1 to win the game 3-0.
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England manager Gareth Southgate has told Jack Grealish that he may not get a chance at international level unless he plays regularly in the Premier League.
The Aston Villa midfielder has seven caps for England at under-21 level but has not yet received a call-up for the senior squad.
With Callum [Hudson-Odoi], he's playing Europa League, he's playing Premier League - that does make a difference.
Gareth Southgate
He last played in the top flight for Villa in 2016 but they have failed to win promotion since, losing in the Championship play-off final last season.
Grealish was then linked with a move away from Villa Park, Tottenham making bids that were rejected in the summer. The midfielder then pledged his future to Villa, signing a new five-year contract.
However, Southgate says that, if he is to achieve his international ambitions, Grealish will have to either get promoted with Villa or seek a move to a Premier League club.
The England boss said: "Although we can see the quality, when the evidence of the opponent is a different level, that's where it's hard to directly correlate what that's going to look like at a level above.
"With Callum [Hudson-Odoi], he's playing Europa League, he's playing Premier League - that does make a difference."
Southgate added that, as an ex-Villa player himself, he hoped to see Grealish and the club back in the top flight before too long.
Meanwhile Southgate is preparing his side to face Montenegro away in the Euro 2020 qualifiers on Monday night.
His side top Group A after starting their campaign with a 5-0 win at home to the Czech Republic on Friday, Raheem Sterling scoring a hat-trick.
They are 1/3 for the win on Monday with Montenegro 10/1 and the draw 7/2.
Sterling is 15/8 to score at any time on Monday while England are 7/1 to win the game 3-0.
View all Soccer betting
Source: bet365.com