Jack Grealish Returns to Everton on Loan
Jack Grealish is heading back to Everton, and this time the stakes feel even higher.
In the frantic final hours of the transfer window, the 30-year-old will return to Hill Dickinson Stadium on a season-long loan from Manchester City, with his medical booked for Tuesday morning. The deal is in place, the clock is ticking, and Everton are moving decisively.
Ndiaye out, Grealish back in
This move starts with the one that hurt. Iliman Ndiaye is on his way to Manchester City in a transfer worth up to $88 million (£65 million), a sale that left David Moyes suddenly short of creativity and end product in the final third.
Everton’s response was instant. They went straight back to the club taking Ndiaye away from them and reopened the door for Grealish within hours. They knew exactly what they were getting.
Grealish spent last season on loan with the Toffees, delivering two goals and six assists in 22 appearances before a stress fracture in his foot cut his campaign short in January. The numbers only tell part of it. His swagger on the ball, his willingness to graft, and his connection with the crowd turned him into a genuine fan favourite in a matter of months.
Even while he rehabbed and City weighed up his future, Everton kept the lines of communication open over the summer. Sunderland and Aston Villa both showed interest, but Moyes and Everton never really stepped away. Now, with the deadline looming, that persistence has paid off. Barring any late twist in the medical, Grealish will be signed, sealed and back in blue before Tuesday night is out.
A financial statement from Everton
The money involved underlines how badly Everton wanted this to happen.
They are set to cover around 90% of Grealish’s wages, a huge outlay given he earns close to $405,000 (£300,000) per week at City. There is no loan fee on top, but this is still a heavyweight financial commitment for a club that has had to watch every penny in recent windows.
Crucially, the agreement includes an option to buy next summer for $67.5 million (£50 million), when his Manchester City contract expires. If this season works for all parties, Everton will have a clear path to make the move permanent.
Grealish joined City from Aston Villa in 2021 for a then-British-record $135 million (£100 million) and helped stock the Etihad trophy cabinet under Pep Guardiola. League titles, domestic cups, European nights — he has lived it all. But as the seasons rolled on, his minutes shrank. Competition intensified, systems evolved, and a player who thrives on rhythm found himself watching more than playing.
With his deal running down and his wages complicating any permanent exit, City needed a solution. A second loan to Everton clears space in their squad and wage bill. For Grealish, it offers the one thing he has been missing: regular football, in a team and a city where he already knows he belongs.
What Grealish gives Moyes
At full tilt, Grealish is a problem for defenders. A direct, ball-carrying winger, he drags opponents out of shape, wins fouls in dangerous areas and creates lanes for runners around him. His first spell at Everton showed that, away from the tactical straightjacket he sometimes faced at the Etihad, he still has the licence and personality to dominate games.
The foot injury in January was a brutal interruption. But he has recovered and already featured briefly for City this season, enough to prove his fitness is back on track. Now he walks into a dressing room that already trusts him and a fanbase that never really stopped singing his name.
He returns to a forward line in flux. Everton have agreed a deal worth more than $54 million (£40 million) for USMNT striker Folarin Balogun from Monaco, a move designed to sharpen their edge in front of goal. At the same time, Beto has been sent to Fiorentina for $23 million (£17 million), another piece of the attacking puzzle shifting abroad.
Drop Grealish into that reshaped unit and Moyes suddenly has options: a creator off the left, a link player between midfield and attack, a leader in big moments. For a manager who values both work rate and bravery on the ball, it is an almost tailor-made reunion.
The road beyond deadline day
Because Grealish is out of contract at City next summer, this loan always carries the feel of an extended audition for a permanent move. If he delivers and the finances still stack up, Everton can trigger that $67.5 million (£50 million) option and build around him long term.
For now, the priority is simple: get him through the medical, get the paperwork done, and get him back on the pitch in blue as quickly as possible.
City will press on with their own evolution. Everton regain a player who lit up their season before injury struck. And Grealish, at 30, gets another chance to prove he can still bend Premier League games to his will — this time in a place where he already knows he’s wanted.
