Everton have decided against Conor Coady’s permanent signing.
Coady arrived at Goodison Park last summer on a season-long loan from Wolves, where he fell out of favour under erstwhile manager Bruno Lage.
The England international, 30, initially enjoyed a flying start to his time with the Blues, featuring 19 times prior to the January appointment of Sean Dyche.
But Coady’s first-team prospects suffered a nosedive as the Everton manager partnered Michael Keane or Yerry Mina with James Tarkowski at centre-back.
Consequently, the option to extend the Merseyside-born defender’s stay for a fee in the region of £4.5 million this summer has already been passed up.
Also joining Coady in departing Goodison is his one-time Wolves teammate Ruben Vinagre, who returns to Sporting Lisbon after an injury-hit campaign.
Everton director of football Kevin Thelwell said: “We want to sincerely thank Conor and Ruben for their impeccable professionalism and valuable contributions both on and off the pitch during their time with the club.
“We wish both players the best in their futures.”