Tottenham Hotspur are looking to make an offer for their long-standing target Ross Barkley in the January transfer window. The Everton midfielder could be a subject of £15m bid from Spurs in January, according to latest claims from Bleacher Report.
Barkley’s contract at the Goodison Park expires next summer and the England international has ruled out the prospect of extending it. He was publicly derided by former manager Ronald Koeman, who had time and again questioned the midfielder’s ambitions.
However, with the Dutchman not at the club anymore, there is a ray of hope within Everton hierarchy that Barkley could be persuaded to stay at his boyhood club.
Caretaker manager David Unsworth has spoken about Barkley’s importance in the squad but it looks highly unlikely that the midfielder would stay back at Everton.
The Toffees realise that they could lose Barkley on a free transfer next summer and could look to cash in on him in the January window. The 25-year-old came close to leaving Everton in the summer after Chelsea made a deadline day dash to sign him. However, a combination of his injury and desire to wait for Tottenham’s bid meant that the move to Chelsea did not happen.
It is now believed that Spurs would make a bid of £15m in January to take Barkley, rather than wait until his contract expires in the summer.
If that happens, it would represent a climb-down from Everton’s asking price. The Toffees started the summer looking at a value of £50m for the England international. It was believed that the steep valuation was one of the reasons for the move not going through.
Will Everton accept the bid? It may represent a huge drop, but the value should be acceptable for the Toffees considering their weak bargaining position. Also, with the player not too keen on staying at the club, it looks like a win-win for them.
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino believes that Barkley has unfulfilled potential and that he can extract the best out of the midfielder. No wonder that Barkley wanted to wait for Spurs’ offer before committing his future.
Do you feel Ross Barkley will represent a shrewd signing for Spurs?
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