Overview
- Everton are negotiating with Manchester City over Grealish’s future, weighing a permanent deal at a lower fee or another season-long loan.
- The current loan includes a £50m option to buy, which Everton view as too high for a 30-year-old entering the final year of his contract.
- Wages near £300,000 a week remain a major hurdle, even after Everton spent about £12m to cover most of his pay this season.
- Grealish’s season ended in January after surgery for a stress fracture in his left foot, and he has stayed in Liverpool for rehab, which club sources see as a positive sign.
- Manchester City see limited room for him after signing other attackers, while his early impact at Everton — two goals, six assists and August’s player-of-the-month award — drives the push to keep him.