Manchester City and England ace Jack Grealish is among those to have benefited from the coaching of Gillingham’s new boss Stephen Clemence.

The two worked closely together at Aston Villa, with Grealish keen to take his game to the next level. Clemence ensured the attacking midfield ace got all the help he needed.

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Grealish was in his early 20s at the time, then playing with the England under-21s, with Clemence working as first team coach at Villa under Steve Bruce.

Extra work after training paid off and the midfielder appreciated the help.

"I asked Clem if he could help me and make me a better player,” Grealish said at the time.

“Clem is the closest I’ve been with all the assistant managers I’ve had.

“I’m just glad to have someone like Clem taking the time out to help me.”

Clemence hasn’t forgotten his time with the England star, saying: “Jack is by far the best player I've ever worked with on a daily basis.

"His ability is phenomenal, the way he carries the ball, his awareness on the pitch. I'm so pleased he's gone on to win what he has.”

It’s that kind of dedication that led to him getting the job at Gillingham, with chairman Brad Galinson highlighting the need for the new head coach to pay extra attention to players’ needs.

Galinson said: “We wanted to make sure the manager realises it is the players first, not the manager first.”

Prior to joining the Gills, Clemence had been working with potential young stars at Manchester City.

He had been asked to assist with their senior academy players including England under-21 defenders Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Callum Doyle.

Clemence will take training at Gillingham for the first time today, assisted by new no.2 Robbie Stockdale, ahead of facing the local media in the afternoon. Their first game in charge will be on Saturday against Hereford in the FA Cup First Round.