Everton remain determined to find a way to re-sign Jack Grealish, despite significant changes to the transfer plans that had appeared likely to bring the Manchester City player back to the club.
Sources indicate that Everton’s interest in Grealish is still strong, even though the Premier League club has made progress towards bringing former forward Richarlison back to Goodison Park.
Grealish spent last season on loan at Everton and made a positive impression during his time on Merseyside. The 30-year-old was expected to be part of a potential deal involving Everton and Manchester City, as several clubs explored a series of linked moves.
Manchester City had been pursuing Everton forward Iliman Ndiaye, while Tottenham were previously interested in Cody Gakpo. The assumption was that Ndiaye could move to City, with Gakpo heading to Spurs, while Grealish was potentially included in an agreement between Manchester City and Everton.
However, the situation changed last week. Manchester City’s long-standing admiration for Gakpo’s ability to operate in a number of attacking positions led them to step up their pursuit of the Dutch forward. City were particularly keen to add further support for Erling Haaland.
That development affected the wider transfer picture. At the same time, Tottenham and Everton opened discussions about a possible exchange involving Richarlison and Ndiaye, changing the structure of the deals that had previously seemed the most probable.
Everton have since made a breakthrough in their efforts to bring Richarlison back, but that progress has not ended their pursuit of Grealish. The Toffees continue to hope they can agree a separate route to bring the England international back after his successful loan spell last season.
Grealish’s future has also been linked with Aston Villa and Sunderland during the past week. Nevertheless, sources indicate that Everton remain firmly interested in the former Aston Villa player, despite the collapse of the transfer sequence in which his move had potentially been connected to Ndiaye and Gakpo.
The club’s pursuit of Richarlison and continuing interest in Grealish are therefore being treated as separate developments, after the involvement of Manchester City and Tottenham altered the original plans.