Everton have confirmed in their 2019/20 retained list that Luke Garbutt will leave at the end of his deal this summer. The 27-year-old has been on the periphery at Goodison Park since 2017, finds himself behind two players in the pecking order and is out of contract next week, so his departure has been on the cards for a while.
Garbutt joined Everton from Leeds United in 2009 and has gone on to make 12 appearances in all competitions, making one assist. The left-back’s last outing in an Everton shirt came in May 2015, so he embarked upon loan moves away from Goodison Park to get regular playing time.
Garbutt made 26 appearances for Fulham (July 25, 2015 – May 31, 2016), eight appearances for Wigan Athletic (August 16, 2016 – January 2, 2017), 36 appearances for Oxford United (July 2, 2018 – May 31, 2019) and 30 appearances for Ipswich Town (July 12, 2019 – May 31, 2020). With Lucas Digne and Leighton Baines ahead of the 27-year-old in the pecking order, he’s never managed to nail down regular football.
Now Garbutt’s contract is up, he’ll be released on a free transfer in the coming days. The defender impressed on loan at Ipswich, so he should easily find a new club in the Football League.