West Brom fan Adrian Chiles ashamed at what he did to Jack Grealish
West Brom supporter Adrian Chiles has questioned his morals after aiming abuse at former Aston Villa star Jack Grealish.
The most expensive English player of all time was consistently booed and jeered by local rivals throughout his spell at Villa Park.
This culminated in him being punched by a fan on the pitch in a second city derby clash in 2019, proving just how hated the 29-year-old was at the time.
Although nothing as outrageous as that happened at The Hawthorns, Chiles has still been left regretful by his own actions towards the ex-Villa man.
Chiles regrets Grealish abuse at West Brom
The last time that the Villans travelled to B71 in front of supporters came in the 2018/19 playoff run, which Dean Smith’s side went on to win.
After securing a win in the first leg at Villa Park, the second leg went to penalties, thanks to an early Craig Dawson header from a Mason Holgate long throw.
| West Brom (3) | Aston Villa (4) |
| Mason Holgate (Miss) | Conor Hourihane (Goal) |
| Ahmed Hegazi (Miss) | Mile Jedinak (Goal) |
| Tosin Adarabioyo (Goal) | Jack Grealish (Goal) |
| Kieran Gibbs (Goal) | Albert Adomah (Miss) |
| James Morrison (Goal) | Tammy Abraham (Goal) |
Regardless of the result, the atmosphere throughout the clash was palpable and arguably hasn’t been as good as that night many times since.
With that being said, the tension of the Midlands derby clash with a place at Wembley on the line certainly brought the worst out of some fans.
None more so than Chiles, who has been left to dwell on his abuse towards Grealish in particular after Phil Foden dealt with a similar level of problems in the most recent Manchester derby.
Writing in his column for The Sun (11 April), he said: “I confess, I’ve yelled and chanted stuff at football matches that I would never, and I mean never, have yelled or chanted anywhere else.
“I shouted some dreadful things at Jack Grealish, for example, at a play-off semi-final when he was at Villa. I’m quite sure he couldn’t care less, but I can’t say it was my finest hour.
“I don’t excuse myself, but these things happen in football’s moral universe, where it’s not that there’s no right or wrong, but there is a big, bad grey area.”
Chiles not alone in West Brom admission
It is fair to say that everyone gets slightly carried away in the stands when watching a game, and Chiles won’t be alone in his comments towards Grealish.
That doesn’t excuse the behaviour, but it does somewhat signify what the Baggies are missing right now in terms of support at The Hawthorns.
Complaints have piled up in recent years that the atmosphere isn’t what it once was and has had an impact on Tony Mowbray’s side.
The head coach needs the backing of supporters as his side have let their spot in the playoffs slip and looks to have fallen away completely.
Now it looks as if Bristol City or Coventry City will take up that opportunity and leave Albion with another second-tier season where the fans really need to step up.