Everton Close in on Tyrique George as Chelsea Reshapes

Everton are on the brink of turning Tyrique George’s short, sharp audition on Merseyside into a long-term commitment, with a deal close for the Chelsea winger after his loan spell at Goodison Park.

The 20-year-old arrived in January with an option to buy set at £25m. Everton have gone back to the table and reworked that into a lower upfront fee structured with add-ons, a move that reflects both their financial reality and their belief that George’s ceiling is worth betting on.

He played just 11 times, started only once. Yet he clearly made his mark. Over four months, George convinced David Moyes that he was more than just another loanee passing through.

In May, on the eve of the final game of the season, Moyes called him “an excellent boy” with an “excellent work-rate” when quizzed about a permanent deal. Those words are now turning into a contract.

Goodison rebuild gathers pace

George is only one piece of a wider reshaping of Everton’s squad.

The club are finalising a £16m move for Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney, another young, technical option to freshen a midfield that has too often looked short of legs and ideas.

Attacking midfielder Merlin Rohl is also set to stay. After a successful loan from SC Freiburg last season, Everton are ready to make that move permanent, banking on the German’s ability to knit play between the lines.

There is a changing of the guard as well. Idrissa Gana Gueye and Seamus Coleman have both departed at the end of their contracts, taking with them years of experience, leadership and dressing-room authority. The message is clear: this is Everton leaning into a younger, more dynamic core.

George’s winding road out of Chelsea

For George, a permanent move would end a long, stuttering exit from Chelsea.

A product of the club’s academy, he has effectively been on the market for the past 12 months. RB Leipzig held talks last summer, sensing an opportunity to pick off another young English talent. Then came Fulham. A £22m switch was lined up for deadline day in September 2025, only to collapse late and leave the winger in limbo.

Everton offered a route back into the Premier League spotlight. Now, they are close to making him part of their future rather than someone else’s nearly-man.

Chelsea trim the squad under Alonso

At Stamford Bridge, George’s departure would be one small step in a much bigger reset.

Chelsea are in the middle of a squad rebuild under new manager Xabi Alonso, trying to balance ambition with the hard edge of financial reality after finishing 10th in the Premier League and missing out on European football.

They have already moved for Marco Palestra from Atalanta and are still tracking Crystal Palace defender Maxence Lacroix, Como’s Jacobo Ramon and Rayo Vallecano full-back Pep Chavarria as they look to reshape the spine and the depth of the squad.

But the days of endlessly stockpiling players are over. With no European competition, there will be fewer games, fewer matchdays, and less broadcasting and gate revenue. On top of that, Chelsea remain under a Uefa settlement agreement for the next three seasons after breaching financial regulations last summer. The margin for error is slim.

Sales on the horizon

That combination makes outgoings inevitable.

Real Madrid are interested in Enzo Fernandez, a marquee name whose sale would bring in a significant fee but also rip out a key part of Chelsea’s midfield.

Trevoh Chalobah is attracting attention from Como and Inter Milan, while the futures of Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana are all unresolved as Chelsea weigh up who fits Alonso’s long-term vision and who becomes collateral in the financial balancing act.

Even in attack, there are decisions to be made. Forwards Alejandro Garnacho and Liam Delap also sit in the uncertain column, their next moves tied to how aggressively Chelsea choose to cut and reshape.

As Everton push to secure George and close in on Hackney and Rohl, and as Chelsea juggle signings with sales, one question hangs over both clubs: who will look back on this summer as the turning point, and who will see it as the window that got away?