Jack’s tribute to Finlay: Grealish keeps his word to young Man City fan with cerebral palsy as he dedicates England’s sixth goal against Iran to him by doing arm ‘worm’ celebration
- Footballer Jack Grealish scored against Iran in the 89th minute of the match
- He celebrated by doing the arm ‘worm’ celebration, keeping his promise to a fan
- Grealish promised Finlay, 11, he would dedicate his next goal to the youngster
- Click here for the latest World Cup 2022 news, fixtures, live action and results
England footballer Jack Grealish has kept his promise to a young fan with cerebral palsy by dedicating his goal against Iran to him by doing the arm ‘worm’ celebration.
He scored in the 89th minute of the Three Lions squad’s opener against Iran and stuck to his word after promising an 11-year-old superfan that he would dedicate his next goal to him by doing a celebratory dance.
Last week the Manchester City star met Finlay, an 11-year-old fan who written a letter to the midfielder to praise him for raising awareness of cerebral palsy, a condition that affects movement and coordination.
Jack Grealish kept his promise to a young fan with cerebral palsy by dedicating his goal against Iran to him by doing the arm ‘worm’ celebration
Last week the Manchester City star met Finlay, an 11-year-old fan who written a letter to the midfielder to praise him for raising awareness of cerebral palsy
Jack Grealish pictured with his sister Hollie, 19, who has cerebral palsy
The video, which was for Premier League’s Fan Mail, saw Jack reading a letter from his young fan Finlay – who described him as his ‘idol’.
The letter said: ‘To Jack, my name is Finlay and I am 11 years old. I am a huge Man City and England fan.
‘I have cerebral palsy and I saw that your sister has cerebral palsy too. Are you a good brother to her?
‘I love the way you are really good with your sister, you really get it. You always have her there with you and you look really proud. Especially when you won the league.’
It continued: ‘I wish there were more people in the world just like you who treat people with disabilities the same as anyone else.
‘It makes me really happy when I see you, a famous footballer, know what it’s like to live with people with cerebral palsy.’
Grealish doing the arm ‘worm’ celebration dance after he made a promise to young Finlay
Jack Grealish kept his promise to a young fan with cerebral palsy by dedicating his goal against Iran to him by doing the arm ‘worm’ celebration
The youngster said that he loved to play football but described some of the difficulties he faced including not finding the right football boots and being slower than his peers due to his affected movement.
He finished: ‘I hope you get this letter, you are my hero and the best big brother to your sister.
‘It is my dream to meet you and give you a high five because I can’t hand shake.’
Responding to Finlay, 27-year-old Grealish arranged to meet the youngster and promised him that the next time he scored a goal, he would celebrate by doing a dance of Finlay’s choosing on the pitch.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=HVpQiMpB_3w%3Frel%3D0%26showinfo%3D1%26hl%3Den-US
Asking him to do the ‘worm’, Grealish laughed saying he would probably get injured and promised to do the arm ‘worm’ instead.
After scoring England’s sixth goal of the match, the footballer celebrated with his Three Lions team-mates and then performed the arm wiggle as promised.
Fans were quick to praise him on social media following the goal, calling him ‘an absolute legend’ and ‘man of his word’.
Others said the moment had brought ‘tears’ to their eyes after watching the heartwarming moment.
During the video Grealish opened up about his ‘close relationship’ with his sister Hollie, 19, who also has cerebral palsy.
In his reply to Finlay, he gave a heartfelt tribute to his younger sibling, 19, saying: ‘I love her so much’.
Sweet: ‘They said that she wouldn’t be able to talk, she wouldn’t be able to walk, and do a lot of stuff but here we are and she can do everything,’ he continued
Jack shared: ‘I’m so close with my little sister. Hollie is 19 now, she was born three months premature’
Letters: Reading the letter aloud, the Manchester City player read: ‘To Jack, My name is Finlay and I am 11 years old. I am a huge Man City fan and England Fan. I have cerebral palsy and I saw hat your sister has cerebral palsy too
Gifts: The footballer wrote his young fan a reply back, alongside a signed football shirt
Talking to the camera, Jack explained: ‘I’m so close with my little sister. Hollie is 19 now, she was born three months premature.
‘They said that she wouldn’t be able to talk, she wouldn’t be able to walk, and do a lot of stuff but here we are and she can do everything.
‘Obviously I love her so much, yeah I think I’m a good big brother to her,’ he laughed.
Grealish has spoken previously on his relationship with younger sister Hollie, taking to Instagram on her birthday to gush: ‘Keep being you and the happy little girl you are’.
Earlier this year he was appointed a principal ambassador for the Special Olympics GB in a bid to drive greater inclusivity in sport.
He said: ‘I’ve been thinking for some time about how I can best use the platform football has given me to create a positive change, and it had to be something really close to my heart.’
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