Newcastle United and Everton meet for the second time in five days tonight, and for once the football may not be the main talking point. Jack Grealish, on loan at Everton from Manchester City, was left out of Thursday’s Carabao Cup win over Newcastle after the club said he had breached club discipline, and he is widely expected to miss the Premier League rematch at St James’ Park too.
Kick-off is 8pm Irish time, live on Sky Sports.
What we know about the Grealish row
Everton said in an official post on X before Thursday’s cup tie that Grealish was “unavailable for selection due to a breach of Club discipline”. The club did not give further detail.
talkSPORT reported that the omission followed an unauthorised absence from a training session, a report cited by Goal. Football365 reported that he did not turn up for training on Monday last week and that he had also been fined. Neither Everton nor Grealish has publicly confirmed those details, so they should be treated as reports rather than established fact.
The episode is more awkward because Everton had attributed Grealish’s absence from the 2-0 Premier League defeat to Arsenal to illness. Previews for tonight’s game, including VAVEL’s, expect him to be absent again.
The 31-year-old is on his second loan spell at the club. During his first, last season, he scored twice and provided six assists in 20 appearances before a foot injury ended his campaign in January, according to Goal. He returned to Manchester City over the summer before rejoining Everton ahead of the transfer deadline.
Thursday’s cup tie: the story so far
Everton beat Newcastle 3-1 at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Thursday to reach the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, with James Garner, Hayden Hackney and Thierno Barry on the scoresheet and Dan Burn scoring a late consolation for the visitors. Everton’s reward is a quarter-final against League Two Fleetwood Town, who knocked out Arsenal on penalties.
Newcastle head coach Matthias Jaissle was angry with his side’s display afterwards, and he will expect a strong reaction in front of his own supporters.
Team news
Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite is recovering from a concussion picked up against Chelsea and is a doubt, according to VAVEL. David Moyes spoke to the media after Thursday’s game, and Everton’s official website flagged a fitness update on Branthwaite ahead of the trip to Tyneside.
For Newcastle, forward William Osula picked up a knock on Thursday that is described as minor, while Jacob Ramsey, Harvey Barnes and Nico González, who were withdrawn at half-time in the cup tie, are expected to be available.
Everton arrive 14th in the table, according to VAVEL. They have lost only twice in the league this season but have scored just eight league goals, so Barry, who has three Premier League goals and found the net again on Thursday, is a key figure. Barnes has been Newcastle’s main attacking threat, with four goal contributions in eight league appearances.
What it means
For Everton, a second win over Newcastle in a week would lift the mood further at their new stadium and ease some of the noise around Grealish. For Newcastle, a home defeat to the same opponents in such quick succession would turn up the heat on Jaissle in his first season at St James’ Park.
For Grealish, the bigger question is what comes next. He is a high-profile loan signing, and a prolonged spell out of the side would raise questions about how the arrangement plays out in January.
What happens next
Watch for any update from Moyes or Everton on Grealish’s status. If he is again missing from the squad tonight, expect the questions to keep coming at Moyes’s next press conference. Everton’s next big date after the league programme is the cup quarter-final against Fleetwood.
Sources
- Goal: David Moyes drops Jack Grealish for ‘breach of club discipline’ as Everton beat Newcastle (29-30 October 2026)
- Football365: Jack Grealish sent major warning on his career (30 October 2026)
- Everton FC: Watch Moyes’ press conference ahead of Newcastle trip (30 October 2026)
- VAVEL: Newcastle United vs Everton preview (1 November 2026)
Featured image: Hill Dickinson Stadium Exterior by RoyalBlueStuey, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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