Moyes Evaluates Grealish and George's Future as Everton Prepares for Summer Moves

Jack Grealish’s future at Everton sits on a knife edge, and David Moyes is in no rush to tip it either way.

The Everton manager confirmed the club have yet to decide whether to turn the loan deals for Grealish and Tyrique George into permanent transfers, as a pivotal summer looms at Goodison Park.

Grealish, borrowed from Manchester City last summer, had begun to look at home in royal blue before a serious foot injury cut his season short. In 18 Premier League starts, the 30-year-old produced two goals and six assists, knitting Everton’s attacks together and offering the kind of control and craft the side had been crying out for.

Then came the break. A bad one.

His campaign ended early, and with it, the momentum of a loan spell that had started to feel like something more permanent.

Now he heads back, on paper at least, to a very different City. Pep Guardiola is stepping down, a new manager is coming in, and Grealish remains under contract at the Etihad until 2027. Any Everton move would have to cut through that uncertainty and the financial reality of prising a senior player from a club that does not need to sell.

Moyes, speaking before this week’s clash with Tottenham, made it clear Everton are still in the weighing-up phase.

“We've got two players on loan and, obviously, at the moment, they go back to their clubs and we'll take it from there,” he said. “As the summer goes on, we'll decide what path we're going to take on both of them. We like Tyrique, obviously we like Jack a lot – but we've not got an answer yet.”

The numbers tell only part of the story with Grealish. He gave Everton a passing lane, a way out of trouble, a player willing to take the ball under pressure and drag the team up the pitch. His absence late in the season forced Moyes to reshuffle and stripped Everton of one of their few proven top-level creators.

Moyes also revealed the club have gone out of their way to manage his recovery, even though convention says injured loanees usually head back to their parent club.

“We've looked after Jack since his injury and his injury is coming on,” he explained. “He had quite a bad break in his foot, which has been pinned and it's looking in good order now. The surgeon has been speaking very well about it and thinks it's healing greatly. Normally a player would go back to their parent club and be looked after from there but we'll continue doing our best for Jack.”

That last line lingers. Everton are acting like a club that would quite like to keep him, but Moyes is not about to negotiate in public.

If Grealish’s case is wrapped in pedigree and politics, Tyrique George’s is all about potential.

The 20-year-old forward arrived from Chelsea in January with a reputation, not a résumé. Minutes have been scarce. Just one Premier League start. Only 182 league minutes in total. For a young attacker trying to make his way, that is barely a foothold.

Yet inside Finch Farm, Moyes has seen enough to keep the door open.

“We've enjoyed having Tyrique here – he's been an excellent boy and his work-rate and everything has been excellent, so we're happy with him,” the manager said.

The subtext is clear. George has not had the platform to showcase himself to the wider public, but his attitude and application have hit the right notes behind the scenes. Whether that justifies a permanent deal in a summer when every pound will be scrutinised is another question.

While the futures of Grealish and George remain unresolved, one key piece of Everton’s defensive jigsaw looks close to being locked in. Moyes confirmed the club are “very close” to agreeing a new contract with Vitalii Mykolenko, a significant move given the Ukrainian’s growth into a reliable, front-foot left-back.

In a squad likely to see churn, Mykolenko represents stability. Grealish and George represent choice.

Moyes has laid out the situation with typical bluntness: both loanees return to their parent clubs for now. The real decisions, the expensive ones, will come as the summer unfolds and Everton decide what kind of team they want to be next season – and who is worth betting on.