Grealish spoke to Sky Sports about his reasons for choosing Everton, the impact of injuries last season, and other topics.

Jack, I hear you've chosen a new number: 10. Why that one?

Apparently Ndiaye went to Manchester City. Yes, that's obviously a big loss for us. Ndiaye is an incredible player, and what I admire most about him is his character. He's very humble, and honestly, he's a really good person. So I wish him all the best, and Manchester City has gained an incredible player.

Then number 10 became available, and McNeill also went to Crystal Palace. Number 7 is also special to me because I wore it when I was on loan at Notts County, and then for England in the Euros and World Cup. So I deliberated for a while, thinking long and hard about whether to continue wearing number 7. I have so many good memories in that shirt from last year.

But number 10 has always been special to me. I wore number 10 at Aston Villa, and also at Manchester City. I talked to my parents, and they both said they thought number 10 was the best.

So you always listen to your parents?

Of course. In the end, I chose number 10. I can't wait to wear it at the Hill-Dickinson Stadium.

The transfer deadline day must have been busy, right? That's what we saw from a media perspective. What was it like for you personally?

It was a long day. I woke up around 7, which is quite early for me. After that, I went for a medical and things like that, and then it was just a lot of waiting. Obviously, there are a lot of documents to exchange between two clubs, and because it was the last day, they were also dealing with other deals at the same time. You know? So it was a particularly long day, and I left around 10 that night. But it was good, it's great to be back here and see everyone. I always feel a lot of love, and I'm very welcome. It's really good to be back.

After you left Manchester City, did you always have Everton in mind?

I think so, but honestly, I only spoke to the Manchester City manager last Wednesday. I went to him to talk because I just felt I might not get the playing time I wanted at Manchester City. I have a lot of respect for that manager; he's an incredible coach, very excellent, and also a good and funny person. We had a very good relationship during the treble-winning season, and we kept in touch when he was at Leicester and Chelsea. He's genuinely a great person, and I wish him all the best there.

But I spoke to him last Wednesday, and I said I felt I might not get the games I wanted. I had been injured for six or seven months, and I just wanted to play football. You know? I'm happiest when I'm playing. So we decided that maybe leaving was the best option.

Of course, several Premier League clubs were interested in me, but going elsewhere always felt a bit awkward. In the end, I came back here, and I'm certainly very happy.

What exactly attracted you to Everton?

I can't quite say. I think last year, when I was here, we had a very good start and I won Player of the Month. The fans gave me a lot of love. And the new stadium, it's incredible. When I went back to Manchester City, everyone was talking about that new stadium. When we drove there, we all thought it was amazing.

Coming here, this club reminds me of Aston Villa, with its deep history and always being a strong Premier League team. I know this club hasn't played in Europe for a while, and I think we had a chance last year. When I was injured, the staff would have to calculate the exact figures, but I'm sure we were about 4, maybe 5 points away from a European spot. If I had stayed healthy, and people like Branthwaite, we missed some important players, and Ndiaye was also out for six weeks because of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Coming back this year, I think the manager has made some very good signings. Many people have stepped up, like Armstrong, who performed very well in pre-season. I watched the games and the first few matches of the season, so I think this is the place to be. It means a lot to me to be a key part of helping this club reach Europe.

Looking back at your best form last year, you won Player of the Month, and you seemed very happy. Did you feel that way when you were playing?

Yes, I was indeed very happy. I had a great understanding with my teammates on the same flank because I've always liked, even during difficult times, and I've experienced some at Manchester City, you sometimes look back at your best form. For example, at Villa, I always had a left-footed left-back on my side who liked to overlap and make runs, and then I also had an energetic number eight. I had that setup last year; Mykolenko was always feeding me the ball, and he would overlap; sometimes Garner played in the number eight position, and we had a great understanding. These small details bring out the best in me. So I'm really looking forward to building that chemistry with my teammates on the pitch, that's when I'm at my best.

The fans loved you from your first game; it's like you understood this club as soon as you walked through the door. Do you feel that way? You said it's a bit like Villa, you just get it?

Yes, 100%. Coming here, you immediately feel it from the fans, I felt that last year.

I don't usually check my social media DMs, but recently when I did, it was all blue hearts, and everyone was saying "hope you come back," "come back," and things like that, so I felt I had to come back.

I get along very well with a lot of people here, and I also feel I owe this club something. Not that I let them down last year, because the injury wasn't my fault. In fact, I played for about a month with an injury, and it hurt terribly. I remember my last game before the injury was against Villa. During the warm-up, I swear I couldn't move, I just thought I'd get into the game. In any other game, I might have pulled out, but because it was against Villa, I felt people would say "he doesn't want to play" and so on, so I had to play no matter what. I played that game, didn't play very well, and was in terrible pain afterward, so I went for a scan. Then I broke down and was out for quite a while. So I just felt I owed this club, and that's one of the reasons I wanted to come back.

The fans certainly love you very much. I recently heard McGinn say you're the best player he's ever partnered with. How does it feel to hear that from a fellow professional?

It's very special. McGinn is obviously one of my best friends too. So I think now everyone can finally see how good McGinn is. He's an ideal player, which is why every manager at Villa tried their best to keep him, because he's a manager's dream, and also in the changing room. It's heartwarming to see those words, especially considering the players he's played with.

I played well during my years at Villa, but I really felt in my last season at Villa that I was one of the best players in the Premier League. I remember getting injured with four months left, and I had a lot of goal contributions and was really at my peak. I had that feeling last year too; I felt I had a big impact on the team, even if I didn't always get goals or assists, I felt I brought a lot more to the team than just that.

That's what I want to do now, help the club, the team, and the players. Even the young players in the team, we have two young wingers, George, who from the games I've seen has performed very well, and De Bruyne, I think I can help them on the pitch and give them advice.

You obviously have a lot of experience, and have achieved many personal and team honors. Do you think you can pass on this experience to younger players?

One hundred percent. Because you know me too, I always watch football, I love football. I'll even watch League One and League Two games on TV. Some people might not, and that's fine, some people want to get away from football. But after my injury, there was a time when I couldn't watch football. Really? For a short while, because watching it would make me sad, upset. So I had to wait a while before I could watch again. I didn't go to a home game until the Liverpool match in April, which was two and a half months later.

I watch all kinds of football, and I think I understand the game, I have a good grasp of it. So if I can pass on that experience. These things are learned in training, they might learn something from me. Just like I learned the most from De Bruyne, far more than anyone else, and he was also one of the main reasons I went to Manchester City, because he's my idol. Getting there and seeing how humble he was, and the way he played, I'd never seen anything like it. I learned so much from him, just the little details in football, like waiting a moment before passing, things people don't pay much attention to but are very effective. I learned so much working with Kevin for four years. So I hope the young players can also learn from me, I absolutely hope so.

Do you set goals for yourself, personal goals or team goals?

No, never. I've never set goals. I don't want to say "I'm going to score X goals or X assists," because for example, if I want an assist on the pitch, but if I can shoot, I will shoot, I won't deliberately try to assist to reach a goal. I don't really set goals for myself, I understand why some people do, but it's not for me. I just want to play well every game. I've had too many games in my career without goals or assists, but I felt I played very well, and for me, that's enough.

Let's talk about the manager, Moyes, again. I know you hold him in high regard. Was he also one of the factors in your return to Everton?

Of course, because I get along very well with him. He might say sometimes that I'm a nightmare, but we have a really good relationship. I've told you off-camera too, when I have a really good relationship with a manager, it makes you want to do more for him. You want to give him everything, play well, and succeed for him, and that's what I want to do, and I know many players have that kind of relationship with him.

Looking back at my best periods, I also had a special connection with the managers. Three managers: Sherwood, Bruce, and Dean Smith. I still text them all, which shows I played very well under them, and I feel the same way here with Moyes.

You mentioned Sherwood, I work with him every Saturday. Do you have anything you want to say to him?

He's probably winding someone up (laughs). Absolutely, the funniest person in the world, but he's also a legend, I love him. He helped me a lot in my career, honestly, I remember my first game, we used to train here because he liked to bring youth players along. Also, I think he gave Harry Kane his debut, or he was one of the first to use Kane. We were training here, and the first team or reserves were training nearby, just because he wanted to see what they were doing, and I think that's rare.

I remember I hadn't even started for Villa yet, and after training the day before a game, I went to watch the reserves train, they were all my teammates because I was only 19. I was sitting on a ball, and he came over and kicked the ball. I said "What are you doing?" I didn't even know it was him. Then I said "Oh, boss." He said "Hmm, fancy playing tomorrow?" I said "What?" He said "Do you fancy playing?" I was thinking what on earth he was talking about. We had a home game against Queens Park Rangers the next evening. I said "Of course." He said "Then you're starting tomorrow." It was incredible. He said "Just go out and do what you normally do." That was incredible because he immediately made me feel loved, didn't give me too much information, no feeling of "I need to drill a bunch of things into him," just "Go and do your thing." Just like that, I immediately felt a lot of love, he's a legend. So I would say that to him.

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