Jack Grealish eclipses Bruno Fernandes record in stunning fashion despite Everton draw vs West Ham
Jack Grealish has been back to his tantalising best since making the switch from Manchester to the blue half of Merseyside in the summer.
Grealish has been a breath of fresh air for David Moyes‘ side after completing his season-long loan from Manchester City.
Following in the footsteps of fellow Englishmen Wayne Rooney and Paul Gascoigne, Everton fans have been loving their new number 18.
Grealish won the Premier League player of the month award in August after registering four assists in his first two Premier League starts for the Toffees.
Everton drew 1-1 with West Ham on Monday night, but Grealish still managed to grab headlines with his performance in front of the home fans at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Jack Grealish tops the Premier League in creative metric
The mercurial winger has made a name for himself not just for the low socks and slicked-back hair, but for his mesmerising ability to unpick a stubborn defence.
In the stalemate with West Ham, Grealish completed four key passes, according to SofaScore, which moved him onto 19 for the season, a figure no other Premier League player can match.
The former Aston Villa star surpassed Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes’ 16 Premier League key passes in the draw versus West Ham, with Toffees teammate Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in third on 13.
Dewsbury-Hall is set to miss Everton’s next game against Crystal Palace through suspension, so the role of creator will firmly be on their left winger.
When Grealish gets the ball, he is immediately looking to create something, averaging 3.17 key passes per match despite only completing an average of 25.33 passes per Premier League appearance this season.
- Roughly every eight passes completed by Grealish in the Premier League this season is a key pass
- He supplied four assists in his first two league starts for Everton, but has had none in his last three league outings
- Fernandes ranks second in the Premier League for key passes but is yet to directly set up a goal
This means that, on average, every eighth pass Grealish makes is setting an Everton player up to shoot.
To put that into perspective, the aforementioned Fernandes completes 50.67 passes per match with 2.67 of those leading to a teammate’s shot.
‘Super Jack’ is well and truly back
Despite his playmaking brilliance, Grealish has been criticised for being too selfless in the final third as he focuses on setting up his colleagues.
The 30-year-old forward would have more than his four assists with striker Beto struggling for form in front of goal.
David Moyes has given Grealish the freedom he so desperately needs to do his best work.
Last season, under Pep Guardiola, the £100 million man managed a measly 1.2 key passes per game, which pales in comparison to the figure he is putting up now.
In his treble-winning year, the former Aston Villa superstar still only averaged 1.8 key passes in the league and 1.3 in the Champions League run.
This is a version of Grealish we have not seen before.
Jack Grealish now in the form of his life
Even at Villa, where Grealish was the main man, he was still some way off his current record statistic.
In the season that earned him the nine-figure move to the Etihad, Grealish averaged 2.5 key passes per game and concluded the season with five assists.
Already, it’s expected he will trump that assist tally, needing only one more to match it after just six games.
They say never fall in love with a loan player, but it will be difficult for the Toffees’ fans not to adore what Grealish is doing in an Everton shirt.
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