Everton Round-Up, Friday 30th October: Blues Into Carabao Cup Quarters as Grealish Storm Rumbles on
Everton booked their place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Thursday night with an excellent 3-1 victory over Newcastle United at the Hill Dickinson, goals coming from James Garner, Hayden Hackney and Thierno Barry (Royal Blue Mersey) (Royal Blue Mersey) (Read Everton) (Royal Blue Mersey). It was reportedly one of the Blues' best all-round performances of the season, with Newcastle having plenty of the ball and shots but Everton far more clinical in front of goal (Royal Blue Mersey) (ToffeeWeb). David Moyes' side will now travel to face League Two giantkillers Fleetwood Town in the last eight, with the Lancashire side having already knocked holders Arsenal out of the competition (Royal Blue Mersey) (Royal Blue Mersey) (Royal Blue Mersey). That Arsenal shock even prompted talkSPORT's Adrian Durham to suggest the Gunners are "essentially Everton" without their best player, a line also picked up by TeamTalk (talkSPORT) (TeamTalk).
Hayden Hackney was a standout performer on the night, with Moyes praising the impact of both him and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, though the manager was quick to stress that Hackney still needs to keep improving before becoming a regular starter (Liverpool Echo) (ToffeeWeb). Hackney himself called it a special night as he got off the mark for the club (EvertonFC.com). James Garner also impressed, with the Liverpool Echo suggesting fans finally got the answer they were looking for regarding his quality (Liverpool Echo). Everton's run in the competition has been described by ToffeeWeb as a genuine source of hope at just the right time for the club (ToffeeWeb).
The night's build-up and aftermath were dominated by the news that Jack Grealish was left out of the squad entirely for what was described as a breach of club discipline, with reports pointing to an unauthorised training absence (BBC Sport) (talkSPORT) (ToffeeWeb). Moyes confirmed the decision was made collectively by the club and used the moment to make a point about Everton's standards and values (Liverpool Echo) (Read Everton) (ToffeeWeb). National media were largely united in their view of the situation, with The Guardian suggesting Grealish could have been the poster boy for a new era at the club but now finds his career in limbo, while the Liverpool Echo's Royal Blue column argued he has let supporters down and must face an uncomfortable truth (The Guardian) (Liverpool Echo) (The Guardian) (Liverpool Echo). BBC Sport's Phil McNulty went as far as to ask whether it is now or never for the winger (BBC Sport), while ToffeeWeb's view was blunt: Grealish "owes" the club, the manager, his team-mates and the fans (ToffeeWeb). Read Everton also reported that Moyes had reservations about bringing Grealish back for a second loan spell from Manchester City even before this episode (Read Everton).
There was a distressing note to the evening too, as Thierno Barry's starring performance was overshadowed by news that his house was burgled while the match was taking place, with his partner issuing a family statement afterwards (Liverpool Echo) (Read Everton).
Attention has already turned to Monday night, when Everton make the trip back to Newcastle just five days later, this time in the Premier League (Read Everton) (Read Everton). Moyes has provided an encouraging fitness update on Jarrad Branthwaite, with the defender expected to return for that match after missing the last two games (Liverpool Echo) (EvertonFC.com) (Read Everton). Elsewhere, Sky Sports faced some criticism over its coverage choices for the Carabao Cup tie, after the game was shown only on Sky Sports+ rather than a main channel (Read Everton).
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.