'Verbal agreement' - Everton 'target' set for £5m move to Premier League rivals
Everton transfer news: The Everton target has reportedly agreed a move to a fellow Premier League side.
Former Everton midfielder Ross Barkley is set to join Aston Villa, according to the latest reports.
It is somewhat of a transfer blow for the Toffees who had an outside chance of signing their ex-midfielder after he was available for a move following Luton Town’s relegation. He was a standout performer for Rob Edwards’ side and he is now in line to play Champions League football next season. And a fee of £5m will be paid to the Championship club.
That’s according to Fabrizio Romano; in a post shared on X at mid-day, Romano said: “EXCL: Aston Villa have reached verbal agreement with Luton Town to sign Ross Barkley. Understand fee will be around £5m. Final part needed, medical tests and player’s formal signature — agreement on player side expected at the beginning of July.”
As mentioned, Everton hoped to reunite with their former star, with the Football Insider reporting last week that they had eyed a move for Barkley who played more than 170 times and earned the Merseyside club £15m in 2018 when he left to move to Chelsea. His career stalled in London before he then joined Aston Villa and Nice on loan before his contract ran out. Luton seized the opportunity and signed him on a free last summer.
It was exactly the type of signing that Everton wanted to make given the current circumstances; uncertainty over the club’s future with the takeover and their finances mean they are likely to have to scour players in a similar situation to Barkley and free or players available for a loan.
With Andre Gomes and Dele Alli leaving, and Amadou Onana likely to be sold, Barkley would have fit perfectly into Sean Dyche’s team and would have slotted into a similar role to what he enjoyed at Kenilworth Road last season.
While he will get game time at Villa, he will be seen as a great addition to their squad depth rather than a starter. In contrast, at Everton he could have taken on a strong role as he did at Luton but the latest news means that they will have to look elsewhere for a midfield bargain.