Tottenham and Arsenal are set to fight it out this summer for Everton playmaker Ross Barkley, according to the Daily Star.
The reports suggest that both north London clubs would be willing to
pay £30million for the highly rated England star this summer.
Barkley will have just one year left on his contract in the summer.
Everton boss Ronald Koeman has recently stated that negotiations are
expected over a new deal in the near future.
The Toffees are cutting it fine, though, as their Premier League rivals are circling.
Could quit for Champions League football
There are rumours doing the rounds that Barkley is keen to quit his
boyhood club to play Champions League football next season. That sounds
familiar! It would be hard to stomach for Toffees fans to lose Barkley
in the summer, as he is one of their own.
The 23-year-old came through the youth team at Everton. He is
considered the club’s best youth product since Wayne Rooney. In truth,
there has been no indication what the playmaker will do in the summer.
However, the national press seem to like selling Everton players to
the so-called ‘bigger clubs’. This could just be rumours or a ploy from
his representatives to get Barkley a bigger contract at Everton.
Is finally fulfilling his potential
Ross Barkley has always been a bit of an enigma. At times he looks
like he can beat a whole team on his own, while at other times he runs
around like a headless chicken, making poor decision after poor
decision.
Current Everton boss Ronald Koeman has brought more of the
world-beater out of Barkley than the headless chicken. Barkley is a lad
who seems to lack confidence, but when he is playing with confidence he
can be a joy to watch.
His balance and his ability to go past players are rare qualities,
well in English players they are anyway. The playmaker’s good run of
form has coincided with Everton’s resurgence and late challenge for a
top six place, which they are odds of 5/1 to achieve.
Suddenly he is playing with confidence and making the right passes.
He is doing the simple things right. Barkley is starting to look more
worthy of all those Paul Gascoigne comparisons earlier in his career.
The Wavertree-born star is by no means the finished article, yet.
However, he is producing the goods on a far more consistent basis for
Everton and much credit needs to go to Koeman.
Would he be better off at Everton?
It seems that Barkley may well be better served staying at Everton.
For all the criticism he receives, he is loved by the fans because he is
regarded as the fan on the pitch. Barkley is the lifelong fan that is
fulfilling his dreams by pulling on the famous royal blue jersey.
There are also cons to moving to both Arsenal and Tottenham. At the
moment Arsenal are struggling to make the top-four and are ahead of
Everton only on goal difference. There is also uncertainty about the
future of Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.
The signing may make sense to the north London club. Both Alexis
Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are being heavily linked with an exit from the
club in the summer, as they are in the same contract situation as
Barkley himself.
A move to Tottenham also has its cons. Spurs are going places under
Argentinian boss Mauricio Pochettino and have a promising young team.
One of those talented youngsters at White Hart Lane is England
midfielder Dele Alli.
A combination of Alli and Barkley in the midfield may sound like a
dream. However, for me, they would likely want to occupy the same space.
Arguably both players are number tens but have thrived in more free
roles in recent months.
I believe this could be a similar problem to the one that England had
with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. They may well both be good
players, but maybe they would not thrive in the same team.
Ross Barkley has a big dilemma ahead of him this summer. Unlike
striker Romelu Lukaku, he has strong emotional ties to the club.
However, just like Everton’s former youth product Wayne Rooney, he may
choose with his head rather than his heart.
The playmaker will know that his decision this summer could well
shape the rest of his career. For his sake, I just hope he makes the
right one.
Will Ross Barkley be playing for Everton next season?
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