When Tyrique George joined Everton on loan in January, part of the excitement about the young winger was that the Toffees would be able to see what they had in the player and then would have an option to buy him before other clubs got involved.
George, who just turned 20 in February, made 11 appearances for Everton during the second half of the season, with a single start on February 10 against Bournemouth, failing to score or provide assists for his teammates.
What he did provide, however, was a bit of dynamism that was lacking in a slide mostly lacking in elite athleticism, with David Moyes preferring the likes of Dwight McNeil on the wing opposite Iliman Ndiaye.
While George played just 214 minutes for the Toffees, it was pretty clear how direct he is as a player, and so it seemed like a no-brainer for Everton to trigger the buy option for the Chelsea loanee to join permanently this summer.
But this is Everton, so you know what's going to happen.
Everton are taking the hard road again
According to Patrick Boyland at The Athletic, Everton are "not expected to trigger Tyrique George's c.£25m purchase option but retain interest in player," adding that there is a chance the Toffees' brass could try to negociate with Chelsea regarding the fee.
Considering the circumstances, this feels like deja vu all over again from Everton.
Last summer, the club had a similar option on a loan deal for Charly Alcaraz from Flamengo, albeit at a much lower cost than George's reported fee. Moyes and Co hemmed and hawed about the price early in the summer, before eventually giving in and paying the €15 million price tag.
The subsequent deal they gave Alcaraz told you everything you needed to know about how Moyes felt about making the move, as did the Argentine's playing time when healthy last season. Now it's possible he may leave this summer.
Why Everton continues to do this is baffling. These are the terms the club agreed to when they accepted the loan in January, so it isn't as if there should be any kind of sticker shock.
And George is exactly the type of player Everton should be spending money on. He's young, he's athletic and dynamic, and there's still plenty of room for him to grow, meaning a return on investment is something to reasonably expect.
Instead, Everton seem intent on buying older players who aren't any of those other things that George is, and while you have to have some of those types, it can't be your entire recruitment model.
It's time for Everton to stop making things complicated when they don't need to be, something they appear to have zero intention of doing.
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