Jack Grealish will miss a third consecutive Everton match after manager David Moyes confirmed that the footballer will not be in the squad for Friday's home game against Coventry City.
The 31-year-old Englishman was dropped after breaching club discipline. He failed to report for training on Monday last week, and club staff had difficulty contacting him. Grealish has now resumed training but has not played since his suspension.
„Jack is unavailable. I won't reveal the plan, but we will be working with Jack again soon,“ Moyes said.
The manager declined to say whether the international break would help smooth relations between the player and the club. Asked whether the two sides would find a solution over the next two weeks, Moyes replied: „We'll see. We have to wait and see how things develop.“
Grealish was not in the squad for the 3:1 League Cup victory over Newcastle, and then also missed the 1:0 away win against the same opponent in the Premier League. Before that, he did not play in the 0:2 defeat by Arsenal on 24 October due to illness.
The footballer is on loan at Everton from Manchester City for a second consecutive season and has made seven appearances this campaign. According to the Daily Mail, Moyes had reservations about signing him again because of similar problems last season.
Reports cited by the Daily Mail claim that Grealish had two consecutive nights out before the match against Arsenal. On 19 October, he attended the Pride of Britain ceremony, where he presented an award to 12-year-old Zac Howells. Later that evening, he visited a karaoke bar in London. The following day, he was at a venue in Wilmslow together with Jordan Pickford, Tyler Dibling and Kyle Walker.
The match against Coventry will be Moyes' 592nd in charge of Everton. He will thus equal Harry Catterick's record for the most matches as the club's manager.
A win could lift Everton into the top four before the international break. Thierno Barry has made the biggest contribution to their good form, having already scored eight goals this season. The only major question facing Moyes concerns the fitness of Jarrad Branthwaite, who suffered cramp towards the end of the match against Newcastle.