Everton to start making contract extension decisions soon

Everton beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 at City Ground to open up a 17-point cushion between them and the drop zone. Although survival has not been mathematically confirmed yet, in reality, with only six matchdays remaining, that is as comfortable a position as it gets for David Moyes’ side.

Abdoulaye Doucoure, who scored the winning goal in injury time, seemingly sent a message to the club when he made a contract signing gesture while celebrating his goal in front of the travelling fans. If the gesture wasn’t enough, he also voiced his feelings out loud. “I can’t talk too much about that but it is maybe my last moments at the club and at the moment it is very quiet on the club side. I love this club,” he told BBC Sport after the game.

“I love this club. Since the moment I signed, always I want to stay. My contract is running out so let’s see what happens in the next couple of weeks but I love this club.”

Doucoure’s contract is set to expire this summer and the 32-year-old midfielder could leave as a free agent. The club has opted not to extend his deal so far but the option of negotiating a new contract is also on the table.

It is believed that up until the game at City Ground, the Blues’ stance regarding renewals was to wait for safety to be mathematically confirmed. However, that stance is starting to change now.

“Yeah, we’ve started to look forward now,” said Moyes before Forest. “First and foremost, the job was to make sure that we’re a Premier League club next season.

“So if we weren’t, then obviously things would be completely different. But I believe now that we’ve probably got enough points to be a Premier League club.

“Mathematically, that isn’t completely correct, but we are, so we’re starting to plan, starting to look forward. We’ll talk about the players’ contracts, probably when we’re mathematically safe, because then we can start to understand exactly what the finances all look like.

“So hopefully, in a week or two’s time, we’ll be able to start looking at players’ contracts and what we’re going to do.”

Doucoure isn’t the only Everton player stuck in this limbo. His midfield partner Idrissa Gana Gueye who has been one of the standout players for the club this season is also out of contract in the summer and has voiced his intention to continue here.

I’m not in a rush to decide about my future,” he said this month. “I would love to continue at this place I call home, but that’s not only my decision to make.”

Ashley Young, Seamus Coleman, Michael Keane, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Joao Virginia are among the other regular first-team squad members who have deals expiring in the coming weeks. 

The Everton administration, led by The Friedkin Group, will have to make decisions on the future of 17 players (including those on loan) who are set to be out of contract this summer. A point against Manchester City this weekend would be enough to confirm Everton’s status as a Premier League club next season. Even if they do end up losing to last season’s champions, Ipswich would need to beat Arsenal on Sunday to keep their very slim survival hopes alive.

Therefore, safety can almost be taken for granted. As a result, the players will start getting clarity on their respective futures at the club between this weekend and the final game of the season as the ball starts rolling heading into the summer transfer window.

Reader Comments (4)

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer ()

How to get rid of these ads and support TW

© ToffeeWeb