Jack Grealish's Continued Absence from Everton Ahead of November Break
Jack Grealish will not kick a ball for Everton again before the November international break, with David Moyes confirming the playmaker will miss Friday’s home clash against newly-promoted Coventry.
It is another jarring pause in a career that has rarely been out of the spotlight.
The 39-cap England international, a £100 million signing when he joined Manchester City from Aston Villa, has not played since October 17 against Chelsea. He has already sat out three fixtures. Initially sidelined for what Moyes described as a “breach of club discipline”, Grealish has since been ruled unfit to play, extending an absence that now stretches to at least November 23.
For a footballer of his profile, the silence around the situation is almost as loud as the headlines he usually generates.
“Possibly,” Ball said when asked if there was more to Grealish’s absence. “We’re still trying to figure out what's actually going on, there's nothing really coming out from the club or from Jack at this moment in time, so hope everything's well with him.”
That uncertainty jars with the way Ball talks about the player. Strip away the noise, and his admiration is clear.
“He's an absolutely unbelievable footballer. He's head and shoulders one of Everton's best players when he's playing on form. He loves his football, he's such a likeable lad, everybody likes him, the club adore him, that's why we've gone back in for him, just on and off the pitch, but it looks like he does have a few issues as well unfortunately. Hopefully that can get sorted out.”
The tension between talent and turbulence has followed Grealish for years. The spotlight suits him, but it also burns.
“He does attract attention and obviously doesn't help himself at times,” Ball added. “He's not a youngster anymore and you can make these mistakes as a youngster, we've all done that, but he's getting to that age now where he's probably thinking about the end of his career.”
That line cuts through the usual platitudes. Grealish is no longer the carefree prospect at Villa Park. Every missed week now feels like a missed chapter.
On the pitch, Ball has no doubts about what Everton are missing.
“But his performances for Everton, his first touches are unbelievable. When you see him, when you go to the stadium, you see him live, it's too easy for him. Maybe the fans are giving him a bit of a stick because he does play within himself, he does slow the game down a little bit, but the opposition just don't know how to mark him, don't know what to do with his ability on the ball. So that's been a shame to not be able to witness that in the Premier League so much.”
That is the crux of it. Everton signed Grealish to be the difference-maker in exactly these stretches of the season, when games pile up and quality decides tight margins. Instead, Moyes goes into the final fixture before the break without his most gifted technician, again.
Ball is adamant that the Premier League is still Grealish’s natural stage.
“He's a player that should play in the Premier League and hopefully he can turn it around. David Moyes has said he's going to have his opportunities - when that will be, who knows. It's up to Jack to force his way back into David Moyes' starting XI, but the Premier League and Everton Football Club are in a better place with Jack Grealish. Fingers crossed, I hope he stays around.”
For now, Everton must navigate Coventry without him, and Grealish must watch another matchday pass by. The next time he pulls on a shirt in competitive action, if it comes after November 23 as expected, the stakes – for his season and for his career’s next act – will only have grown sharper.
