‘Entitlement’ - Simon Jordan delivers brutal verdict on Demarai Gray’s Everton departure

Simon Jordan has slammed Demarai Gray for the manner of his Everton departure.

The winger has not played nor trained with the Toffees since returning from the CONCAF Gold Cup with Jamaica over the summer.

Over the weekend, Gray claimed that Everton manager Sean Dyche does not respect him. In response, Dyche insisted that Gray told the Blues he was leaving Goodison Park - but was reminded 'that no moves are done without this club’s say so'.

The 26-year-old is now set to join Saudi Arabia outfit Al-Ettifaq for a reported fee of £8 million.

Jordan, speaking on talkSPORT, says he's not surprised by how the ugly departure has panned out as certain players in the modern game now have a 'sense of entitlement'.

The former Crystal Palace chairman said: "It depends on what you define as respect. If you're not being picked in the side of not being given what you think you're entitled to is not tantamount to a lack of respect. That's tantamount that you haven't got the move you've got so what you want to do is use respect to leverage your point and create the brand of division you think you're entitled to.

“Dychey is a strong character and I don't think he'll be for everybody - and that's fine because not everyone. But what he is I think is a pretty equitable, fair bloke who will give you enough rope and what you do with it is up to you.

“It would strike me that Demarai Gray probably is someone, when you really need somebody, he's not one of those for me I'd go to in the trenches and say: 'I know what I'm going to get from him' when you're in and amongst it'. It doesn't surprise me that there's a disconnect. The boy wants to go to Saudi Arabia at this stage of his career because he's going to get paid.

“There was absolutely no need for this kind of outburst or position but he will say: 'I wanted to cement my view. Should it be encouraged? This is the society we live in - a sense of entitlement. We're entitled to know what goes on involving refereeing decisions rather than accepting them and now players are entitled because we have created this economic landscape and they are islands of their own.

“We've got people like Martin Keown who think players should be at the table to negotiate what they will or won't do - i.e. what they won't do rather than accept the ridiculous riches they've got. Players have got this mindset with very bad advice that is motivated by their own gain. I accept that [it's a minority of players] but they get rewarded for it, we've just seen it.”