Jack Grealish was nowhere to be seen when Everton beat Newcastle United 3-1 at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Thursday night, and the reason had nothing to do with fitness. The club left the on-loan Manchester City winger out of the Carabao Cup tie because of what it described as “a breach of club discipline”.
Everton gave no further explanation. BBC Sport understands that the decision followed an unauthorised absence from training, while Sky Sports News reporter Keith Downie said Grealish failed to turn up for a session in the days before the game.
Moyes stands by the club
David Moyes was asked about the 31-year-old straight after the final whistle and made it plain that he would not be drawn on the specifics. “It’s something I don’t really want to speak too much about. It’s a club decision, so I support the decision,” the Everton manager said, as reported by Sky Sports.
He added: “The club are the people you should go to if you’re looking for more information.” When the question turned to whether Grealish could feature at St James’ Park on Monday, when the two sides meet again in the Premier League, Moyes kept his cards close: “I’d never give any team news away.”
Instead, the Scot chose to focus on the players who did take the field. “The one thing about Everton is that it has got good values behind it,” he said, in comments carried by the BBC. “All the players stand up to the values on pitch and off the pitch. The players did a brilliant job tonight.”
A cup run that did not need him
Everton coped comfortably without their most famous loanee. James Garner, Hayden Hackney and Thierno Barry all scored before Dan Burn grabbed a late reply for Newcastle, and Moyes’s side now head to League Two Fleetwood Town for a quarter-final in December. Fleetwood earned that tie by knocking out Arsenal earlier in the week.
Jarrad Branthwaite sat out a second game in a row as he continues to follow concussion protocols.
What it means for Grealish at Everton
The episode marks a sharp change of mood around a player who was a fans’ favourite on Merseyside last season. Grealish spent most of that campaign at Everton on loan, scoring twice and laying on six goals in 20 appearances and being named the Premier League’s best player for August, before a foot injury ended his season in January.
He returned to Everton before the summer window shut and had made five Premier League appearances this term, plus an outing in the third-round win over Wolves. Sky notes he started the three league matches before last weekend, against Ipswich, Hull City and Chelsea, and then missed the 2-0 loss at Arsenal through illness.
According to the BBC, Grealish has since returned to training at Finch Farm but is expected to be fined for the absence. He is in the last year of his contract at City, who paid Aston Villa £100m for him in 2021, which leaves his long-term future far from settled. Moyes has spent much of the season juggling a thin squad, as our look at Everton’s recruitment needs outlined, so whether he restores Grealish for the trip to Newcastle will be watched closely.
