Grealish joins Everton on loan after Man City spell sputters out
Jack Grealish will try to revive his career at Everton after Manchester City allowed him to leave for Merseyside on a season-long loan Tuesday.
The Toffees have an option to buy the 29-year-old for £50 million at the end of the loan agreement, according to transfer insider Fabrizio Romano. Grealish's Manchester City contract expires in June 2027.
Before they entertain a permanent transfer, Grealish's wages and loan fee over the 2025-26 campaign could cost Everton more than £12 million, The Guardian's Andy Hunter and Will Unwin report.
"I'm over the moon to have signed for Everton - it's massive for me, honestly. This is a great club, with great fans," Grealish said.
The English winger joined Manchester City from Aston Villa in a £100-million transfer in 2021, which held the British record for an incoming transfer before Enzo Fernandez moved to Chelsea for about £107 million around 18 months later.
Grealish won the Champions League, three Premier League titles, and the FA Cup with Manchester City, including his crucial role in the club's historic 2022-23 treble-winning season. However, his form tailed off and his minutes dwindled after that high point, resulting in 10 league starts over the 2023-24 campaign and just seven last season. He was omitted from City's Club World Cup squad this summer.
Aside from getting his club career back on track, one of the main motivating factors behind Grealish's move is regular first-team football ahead of the 2026 World Cup. He described the last offseason as his "worst summer" after he was left out of Gareth Southgate's England squad for Euro 2024. The Three Lions, who are now overseen by Thomas Tuchel, have opened their World Cup qualification campaign with wins over Albania, Latvia, and Andorra.
"Thomas Tuchel ... is a massive fan and sees Jack Grealish as a starter in his team, if only he can get back up and running and playing on a regular basis," BBC Sport's Sami Mokbel said last week.
Everton are steadily recruiting this summer before their first season in the Hill Dickinson Stadium. Thierno Barry, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Adam Aznou, and Mark Travers were signed this summer, and Carlos Alcaraz's loan from Flamengo was turned into a permanent deal, before Grealish made the trip west on the M62.