Demarai Gray update emerges this week amid latest Everton transfer twist
Jamaica manager Heimir Hallgrimsson has provided an update on the fitness of Demarai Gray as the future of the Everton winger remains in the balance.
Gray has yet to feature for the Toffees this season and appeared to be close to joining Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq [Asharq Al-Awsat].
However, Everton are said to have informed Al-Ettifaq that they do not intend to sell the 27-year-old [Ben Jacobs], leading to Gray hitting out at manager Sean Dyche.
Amid all the uncertainty over his club future, Gray is to undergo a fitness test to determine if he is available for Jamaica’s CONCACAF Nations League clash with Honduras in the early hours of Saturday [9 September].
Hallgrimsson is quoted by Jamaica Gleaner [4 September] as saying: “We will have to evaluate his fitness.
“We will do some tests and individual sessions and look at his fitness and then we will make our decision.
Subscribe to Football Insider TV now
“It is always important for players to play all matches as much as possible at a high level. He is working and training really hard, and he is very motivated.”
Unclear
Linking up with his national team could be seen as a welcome distraction for Gray, and an opportunity to prove that he is indeed fit enough to play.
At the same time, the transfer window for Saudi sides closes on Thursday [7 September] and the winger could therefore do with focusing on his club future.
The situation between Gray and Everton right now is messy, to say the least.
As CBS journalist Jacobs reported on Sunday [3 September], Al-Ettifaq supposedly gave Everton just 24 hours to decide whether they intend to accept their offer for Gray, or else they will move on to other targets.
Should the former Leicester City player remain at Goodison Park beyond this week, he is set for an awkward conversation with Dyche upon his return to Finch Farm.
Regardless of what happens over the next few days, Gray at least has a chance to do his talking on the field for his national team should he be fit and available.
In other Everton news, Dyche “will have a problem he has long dreamed of” when the Toffees return to action.
