Pundit predicts when Everton could seal huge Jack Grealish transfer and makes bold wages claim
Everton have been linked with a move for Jack Grealish, but when could the Toffees strike a deal.
David Moyes’ attempts to rebuild Everton haven’t quite gone according to plan as he struggles to get deals over the line.
Speculation has been rife with dozens of players linked with a move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium only for the Toffees to struggle to persuade them that it is the place to be. A respectable mid-table finish after a difficult start to the season should see them looking up and not down the Premier League, if the right signings can be made.
Speculation claiming that Everton are discussing a move for Malick Fofana is exciting as are reports that Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo is a target. Wingers and creativity is badly needed which is why the name of Jack Grealish has emerged as being one on a lengthy shopping list on Moyes’ desk.
Gabby Agbonlahor on Everton’s chances of Jack Grealish deal
Someone who knows Grealish well is Gabby Agbonlahor with the Talksport pundit supporting the move and making a suggestion as to when the deal is most likely to take place: “He should look at it as to World Cup year. Can I go on loan somewhere where the team is going to play to my strengths? That's what I'll be saying if I was him.
“Is David Moyes going to create a squad of players who have got an exciting player, a team where I'm going to play in that number 10 position or on the left, and I'm going to enjoy my football, I'm going to get my goals and assists. And then you look at it at the end of next year, still have a year left in Manchester City, and say has that opened the door for a bigger move? Pre-season started, he might go on a pre-season tour, we don't know. I don't think if he moves, he moves anytime soon.
“I think with the wages that he's on, and a club like Everton, there's going to have to be a lot of negotiations with City and what they pay towards his wages. If it's a loan deal, I don't see it happening to the end of the window. Because sometimes these deals, if you're Everton, you're like, if we sign him today, we might have to pay, I don't know, 200,000 (pounds a week). Of course, because if you're Everton, if you sign him today, you're going to have to pay maybe, I don't know, 200,000 of his wages. But maybe if you get down to the last few days of the window, that might go down to 100,000.”
Why patience could see Everton land bargain Grealish deal
Agbonlahor is right - Everton don’t specifically need Grealish. Not only is he expensive, but he also doesn’t have the sort of numbers that Moyes needs in his forward line. The 29-year old isn’t quite a luxury player but he also isn’t going to be the type of player to be tracking full-backs into his own box to block crosses. The argument about whether or not he is a better player after joining City is a complicated one.
The maverick qualities that he displayed at Aston Villa before his £100m move have almost been coached out of him by Pep Guardiola so that he can fit into a system and philosophy that has brought a lot of success, success that Grealish played his part towards. His wages will be the stumbling block to any move which is the point that Agbonlahor makes, for once, time is Everton’s friend in this particular transfer.