Grealish’s move to Everton could turn out to be a match made in heaven | OneFootball

Jack Grealish has signed for Everton on loan from Manchester City for the 2025/26 season, with the 29-year-old making the move to Merseyside after four years at City.

“I’m over the moon to have signed for Everton – It’s massive for me, honestly,” he said after signing. “This is a great club, with great fans. As soon as I spoke to the manager, I knew there was only one place that I wanted to go.

Grealish was the Premier League’s most expensive ever transfer when he signed for Pep Guardiola’s side in the summer of 2021 for £100 million from Aston Villa.

Grealish was England’s golden boy in that period, coming off the back of an excellent Euros. He had also been the main man for Aston Villa after their promotion to the Premier League in 2019, impressing with his ball-carrying, strength, and ability to drive Villa up the pitch.

He joined City the following season but did not make the immediate impact he would have hoped for. In his first campaign, he started 22 league games, managing only three goals and three assists. Guardiola’s side won the league, but Grealish struggled to make a significant impact.

He struggled with the adaptation to Guardiola’s system. At Villa, it was his unpredictability and flair that excited fans, but at City it felt as though he was playing a lot safer and not taking risks. It became common to see him pick up the ball, progress forwards and then look to pass it back. This was, in many ways, the complete opposite of how he operated at Villa.

Football supporters suggested that it was Guardiola taking the magic out of his game, opting for a more conservative and measured approach, dulling Grealish’s spark.

But Guardiola staunchly defended Grealish during the 2021/22 campaign, saying: “My opinion is he’s played much better than maybe he believes… he needs time. All the players who come here, for the first season, always struggle.”

Another quote from Guardiola also suggested he was happy with Grealish’s difference in playing style. He said: “Jack doesn’t need goals to change my opinion. Since day one, we’ve been delighted with Jack … When the ball arrives to him, rarely will he lose the ball. And that’s what we want.”

But the following season, however, was one of redemption for Grealish. Grealish was a pivotal part of the 2022/23 treble-winning campaign. He played 50 games in all competitions, getting five goals and 11 assists, but it was his performances in big games that really made a difference.

He scored in league games against Arsenal and Manchester United to help City secure the Premier League, and he was unplayable in the Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich, helping City on their way to winning that trophy for the first time in their history.

Despite a memorable campaign, Grealish dipped again the following year. Manchester City signed Jeremy Doku from Rennes, and his arrival effectively signalled the end for Jack Grealish.

Doku’s pace, directness and dribbling were fresh and new, and fans and Guardiola instantly took to him.  City beat Bournemouth 6-1 in November of 2023 and Doku registered four assists and a goal. It demonstrated his potential and ability, and in that one game he showed what City had perhaps been lacking with Grealish.

The Englishman only managed 10 Premier League starts that season, followed by a tally of seven league starts last season. City also signed Savinho in the summer of 2024, and with him and Doku both able to cause havoc that Grealish simply has not been able to, Grealish’s days at City looked numbered.

It felt like the final nail in the coffin in January when Guardiola compared Savinho and Grealish, saying: “Savinho is in better shape and everything than Jack, and that’s why I played Savinho. Do I want the Jack that won the treble? Yeah I want it, but I try to be honest with myself about that. They have to fight.

“You can say it’s unfair. If you think that it’s fine, but you have to prove it to me. Say, ‘OK, I’m going to fight with Savinho, to deserve to play in that position.’ Every single day, every single week and every single month.”

Seven months have passed since these comments, and little has changed. But the move to Everton and the Hill Dickinson Stadium gives reason for optimism that Grealish still has plenty left to give.

Everton feel like a club who are on the up, with a seasoned manager in David Moyes and a new stadium able to welcome 52,000 fans. They look well positioned to have a better season than the last one, according to odds with bookmakers such as those on SmartBettingGuide.

He has made a fine start to life at the Toffees, setting up both goals in Everton’s 2-0 win over Brighton in the first game in their new stadium.

Grealish benefitted at Villa from being far and away the best player, shouldering responsibility and thriving under that expectation. The same could be true of him at Everton. He should also be given the freedom to express himself and be more creative, as well as playing in a side which plays more on the counter-attack instead of dominating possession which better suits his skillset.

If he can rediscover his Aston Villa form, Grealish will be confident of making his way back into the England squad for next year’s World Cup.