Everton Round-Up, Thursday 29th October: Grealish Dropped for 'Breach of Club Discipline' as Everton Take on Newcastle in Carabao Cup
The big story of the evening is a shock team news bombshell ahead of the Carabao Cup fourth-round clash with Newcastle United at Hill Dickinson Stadium, with Jack Grealish dropped from the squad entirely. The Guardian and BBC Sport both report that the England international has been left out "due to a breach of club discipline", with the Guardian adding he is understood to have missed training (The Guardian) (BBC Sport) (Liverpool Echo). It is a major story to break on such a big night for the club.
On the pitch, Everton made the ideal start against Newcastle, with Royal Blue Mersey's live blog reporting that James Garner got the hosts up and running before James Garner fired the Blues 1-0 ahead inside the first half (Royal Blue Mersey) (Royal Blue Mersey). Pre-match, there was plenty of build-up, with Liverpool Echo and Royal Blue Mersey running through the line-up calls facing David Moyes, including decisions over Hayden Hackney and Tyler Dibling (Liverpool Echo) (Read Everton) (Royal Blue Mersey). Everton's own injury picture was also under the microscope, with Liverpool Echo flagging possible doubts including Grealish, Jarrad Branthwaite and Vitaliy Mykolenko before the Grealish news broke (Liverpool Echo).
Moyes had used his pre-match programme notes and press duties to stress the need for Everton to rediscover their cutting edge after back-to-back goalless outings in 2-0 Premier League defeats, with Read Everton reporting his call for more of a clinical touch (EvertonFC.com) (Read Everton). There was no shortage of pre-match colour either, with Prince Rupert's Tower noting Everton's poor record in shootouts and the importance of avoiding penalties against Newcastle (Prince Rupert's Tower), while Read Everton detailed The 1878s' planned flag and banner display and urged fans to get to the Hill Dickinson early (Read Everton).
The prize for victory is now well known: both legs of the night's action confirmed that the winners of Everton versus Newcastle will travel to face League Two's Fleetwood Town in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, with Fleetwood having knocked out holders Arsenal on penalties (EvertonFC.com) (BBC Sport) (Prince Rupert's Tower) (Royal Blue Mersey) (ToffeeWeb) (BBC Sport) (Read Everton). BBC Sport also carried reaction from Fleetwood supporters relishing the prospect of facing one of the Premier League sides (BBC Sport).
Away from the first team, Everton Women made it three wins on the bounce in the Players Cup, beating Sheffield United 1-2 thanks to goals from Rosa van Gool and Noemie Mouchon, with manager Scott Phelan describing it as a "positive night overall" (EvertonFC.com) (Royal Blue Mersey) (EvertonFC.com). Van Gool also spoke of her delight at netting her first Everton goal (EvertonFC.com), while Phelan separately discussed bringing momentum from the women's side into the Newcastle game (EvertonFC.com).
On the transfer front, ESPN and TeamTalk report Everton are weighing up a January loan move for Manchester United's Marcus Rashford, with TeamTalk suggesting United could be open to including a buy option, though wages are seen as a potential obstacle (BBC Sport) (ESPN) (TeamTalk). Liverpool Echo also looked at other striking options the Blues could explore in January given Thierno Barry's status as the only recognised senior forward (Liverpool Echo). Elsewhere, Read Everton reports Chelsea have joined the clubs linked with Jarrad Branthwaite ahead of 2027 (Read Everton).
Off the pitch, there was further discussion of the club's ownership situation, with Liverpool Echo's fan jury calling for fresh changes following the recent Premier League defeat to Arsenal (Liverpool Echo), The Guardian examining the pressures on Moyes amid the Friedkin Group's stated wish to sell and limited transfer investment (The Guardian), and Read Everton reporting that Michael Dell has appeared to dismiss renewed reports linking his family with a takeover (Read Everton). Duncan Ferguson also made a fresh transfer demand of the Everton hierarchy, echoing comments from Jamie Carragher about Moyes being dealt a difficult hand (Liverpool Echo). Read Everton additionally covered concerns about Burnley's parent company resurfacing amid Everton's ongoing £35m compensation case appeal (Read Everton), while Local MP Ian Byrne has written to the Premier League demanding action over poverty chanting after the recent Chelsea game (Read Everton).
Finally, Everton Legends were out watching the Blues train, as shown in a video published on the club's official site (EvertonFC.com), while defender Finnigan opened up in an emotional ACL diary entry about doubting whether he could battle back from injury (EvertonFC.com).
This round-up is written with the help of AI, using only the day's headlines from the publishers credited above. Each point links to the original report — tap the source name to read it in full.