Jack Grealish faces one of the biggest seasons of his career after joining Everton on loan for the 25/26 campaign.
David Moyes was very keen to have Grealish at Everton, and the 29-year-old moves to Merseyside with the aim of impressing Thomas Tuchel enough so that he is included in the England squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup next summer.
Grealish has taken a pay cut to try and make this happen, with many tipping Moyes to get the best out of the winger once he puts an arm around the Man City loanee.
Sam Allardyce is another with this belief, with the former Everton boss hitting back at talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan for comments he made about the England star and Moyes.
Sam Allardyce at a FIFA speaking event.
Photo by Alex Livesey – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images
Sam Allardyce thinks Jack Grealish will flourish under David Moyes
This week, Jordan stated that flair players do not do well under Moyes, who many view as a pragmatic manager, but Allardyce does not think this is the case and expects Grealish to do very well at Everton.
“Absolutely, very, very excited indeed,” Allardyce said when asked if Everton fans will be excited about Grealish’s arrival.
More Man City News
“And Simon was saying on the radio yesterday that he shouldn’t be going to Moyesy, because Moyesy doesn’t like flair players. Simon, you’re so wrong. It’s unbelievable. You don’t know Moyesy, I do.
“Moyesy will do a great job with Jack. Jack will flourish under Moyesy. Everton will love him. He’ll go out there and play football, and apparently, a bit of credit, I think he’s dropped his wages slightly, if I believe that the news is right.
“But Jack just wants to play football, and certainly getting away from Man City as quickly as possible. As much as I like Pep, but for Jack, get out of there as quickly as you can because otherwise your career will go backwards.
“So go play football, go enjoy it. Make Everton want you full-time as quickly as possible, mate.”
West Ham was another option for Grealish, amongst others, but the general consensus in the football world is that the winger has made the right move linking up with Moyes for the upcoming season.
Why Jack Grealish chose the number 18 shirt at Everton
Grealish will wear the number 18 for the 25/26 campaign at Everton, and the winger has explained the reason for choosing this number was a result of his admiration for Wayne Rooney and Paul Gascoigne.
“There is a reason for [choosing number 18],” the Man City loanee explained to evertonfc.com. “There were other numbers, but my two favourite English players ever are Wayne Rooney and Paul Gascoigne, and I know they both wore number 18 here.
“So, as soon as I knew this deal was close, I had a look and number 18 was free, so that was perfect for me, and it was the only number I was going to take from that point.
“I spoke to Wayne [Rooney] before I came here and I mentioned that to him – about the number 18 – so I hope he’s happy as well!”
If Grealish can produce a season like the two English legends have done in the past, then the 29-year-old will have put himself in a great position to go to next summer’s World Cup.