Ross Barkley’s move to Tottenham didn’t quite come to fruition in the summer window but according to reports from the Evening Standard, we will be looking to sign the Englishman in the winter window.
The Everton midfielder is in the final year of his contract and has refused to sign a new deal for Ronald Koeman’s side. The Englishman has often faced the ire of his manager at the Toffees and with us looking for a quality attacker, moving for Barkley does make sense.
However, no deal could be concluded in the summer with us and Barkley, rather surprisingly, was having a medical at Chelsea before he pulled the plug and decided to stay at Everton for another six months at least.
Things didn’t actually look all that great for the midfielder as he was actually carrying a hamstring injury and was ruled out for close to two months. For now, he will be hopeful of getting some game time for the Toffees as he looks to not only seal a move in the winter window but also to stay in shape for England and the World Cup ahead.
This could be a win-win for us given that Barkley could be available on the cheap, something that Daniel Levy will be looking to exploit.
However, the presence of Chelsea could be detrimental to our negotiations but there is no guarantee that the Englishman will change his mind and return for a medical at the Blues.
Barkley earns close to £60,000 a week for the Toffees but has rejected any attempts to extend his contract and wants a move to a bigger side in hopes of picking up a title or two and of course increasing his pay package.
That was one of the reasons why we couldn’t complete a deal with him earlier and if the Englishman can hold out till the end of the season, we could sign him for nothing and can adjust his wage demands by not having to deal with Everton at all.
We do have one of the best XIs in the Premier League and even if Barkley cannot start every game for us, he does have the quality to turn things around. Hopefully, we will be able to sign him up and add another top talent to a side, and with Mauricio Pochettino at the helm, there is every chance Barkley will become a much better player with us.
