David Moyes has made it clear, Jack Grealish is in line to start for Everton against Tottenham this weekend. After a short outing from the bench in the recent defeat to Manchester United, the Everton manager believes the 31-year-old is now ready for a bigger role.
That matters, because Everton need quality and they need it quickly. Their transfer window closed with more frustration than progress. Grealish returned on loan for a second straight season, but the late collapse of a move for Monaco striker Folarin Balogun left Moyes with a squad short on numbers and light on attacking options.
Jack Grealish boost for Everton
Moyes did not overcomplicate the issue. “I think Jack is special – I think he is ready to play, yes,” said Moyes. “I think Jack is probably a boy who needs the football [matches] more than he needs the training sometimes.”
That sums up Grealish well enough. He is a rhythm player. He needs minutes, contact, pressure, and repetition. Training helps, but matches sharpen him. Moyes sees that clearly and added: “I think game time helps Jack. In ways, that’s him still building up to his best but, I’ve got to say, he’s had a good week of training and he’s beginning to look ready to start.”
Photo IMAGO
Everton will hope this is the point where his season begins properly. Moyes is not asking for miracles, only a return to the level Grealish showed in the opening stretch of the previous campaign. “It’s incredibly exciting if he gives us what he gave us at the start of last season. If we get that level from him then we’ll be thrilled.”
Everton squad depth remains a problem
There is no point pretending Everton are in a healthy position numerically. Christian Norgaard remains out and is not expected back until after the international break. More broadly, Moyes has only 18 senior players available, which is thin by any Premier League standard.
He has admitted Everton may look at the free agent market for cover, which tells you…
..
