The Rumour Mill

Yobo deal '99% done'

19/07/2012 |

Comments (45)

Everton and Fenerbahçe have reached an agreement over a fee for Joseph Yobo if reports out of Turkey are correct.

Complete Sports cite sources in the Turkish press who suggest that the Nigerian defender just has the final details to iron out before he puts pen to paper on a permanent contract after two season-long loans with the Yellow Canaries.

The 31-year-old is clear to begin pre-season training with Fenerbahç when he returns from his homeland this week.

Should the transfer go through, it could pave the way for Steven Pienaar's return to Everton. The assumption that the Blues would need to sell before they could pay Tottenham for the South African has been bolstered by the delay in what seemed like a formality a few days ago given all the fevered speculation he was set to sign.

Original Source: Complete Sports via Joy Online Rumour source ranking:
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Reader Comments

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James Stewart
735 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:39:27

The longest transfer fiasco ever?!

Mike Powell
737 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:42:42

I will believe it when it happens... I'm sick off all these rumours.

Alan Wilson
740 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:47:00

Might this mean there will be some cash in the bank to help the Pienaar transfer to go through?

Clarence Yurcan
741 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:47:01

Good. On an unrelated note, following up from my fan's article from a while ago, I am stunned by the frequency I see people walking around here in New York in Everton shirts, at least once a week I see it. Today, walking to work I saw someone wearing a shirt that read "School of Science: C.O.Y.B." and it's not just in Manhattan, in my neighborhood in Queens I've ran into multiple people wearing Donovan EFC shirts. And consider Everton does virtually no marketing in the U.S. What is the marketing department for this club doing???? There is huge untapped potential to promote Everton here in America.

Sam Hoare
743 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:51:10

Most boring transfer fiasco ever?

Wonder how much it was in the end? 2m? As Alan says, might be the up front fee needed for Pienaar...

Guy Rogers
744 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:57:17

Clarence that is interesting stuff, we seem to have a number of Amercians or people living in Amercia commenting on these threads which is great to see.

Shame we don't have a bit more cash and we could have got Dempsey to really try and push oursleves across the pond!

James Flynn
748 Posted 19/07/2012 at 16:54:41

Clarence - Might as well leave it be or we'll just get frustrated again. The positive is that we are adding followers, not band-wagon jumpers like all the US ManU fans.

What I worry about is Henry's group about to unleash an LFC media blitz here in the States. They know what they're doing, unlike an ownership group we could name.

You're correct, though. Because Everton have Howard and have given our best known player, Landon, his shot at the big-time, there's a major market sitting right there to be exploited.

Ok, I'm frustrated again.

Dan Parker
752 Posted 19/07/2012 at 17:38:00

Hey Clarence,

I live in New York as an expat and we probably account for a fair few Everton shirts along with simply people from the UK visiting on holiday. Having said that, I agree, a lot of American's seem to have a good impression of Everton and what it stands for and support the club.

There's a huge Nike store near Central Park, I've been meaning to pay it a visit to see if they're honouring the new deal and selling our shirts. That would be a start!

I'm constantly going telling people Tim Howard's from New Jersey to their suprise, we should be making the most of it.

Anto Byrne
753 Posted 19/07/2012 at 17:39:24

Yeah San Jose are playing good footy, fast attractive aka Blackpool we should have a feeder club arrangment in the US they have some useful players in the MLS.

Dan Parker
754 Posted 19/07/2012 at 17:41:22

What dreadful English, apologies. can't ToffeeWeb add a spelling and grammar check to the comment form!

Clarence Yurcan
757 Posted 19/07/2012 at 17:50:53

James- will try not to get frustrated about it, just seems like there's so much potential!

Dan - I assume some our expats/Brits living in the U.S. but I know many are American like myself, when I get into conversations with them, I really think there's so much opportunity to market Everton here! Howard also used to play for the NY/NJ Metrostars (what the Red Bulls in MLS were called before being rebranded) probably the biggest soccer star to come from NJ.

Dan Parker
758 Posted 19/07/2012 at 18:08:58

Yep, you're right Clarence. I wonder if the club even brings such things up with Nike for example? Is the KitBag deal in the UK global? It would be nice to see evidence of the board making attempts to progress on this front.

Could also market the fact Babe Ruth went out of his way to visit Dixie Dean whilst in the UK because he was a bigger star at the time. Then there's the Landon Donovan LA contingent!

Not to mention Brian McBride and Joe Max-Moore over the years and the Chris Woods connection with the national side.

Simon Doherty
759 Posted 19/07/2012 at 18:10:05

Its about time... Hopefully peanuts will sign soon now

John Audsley
760 Posted 19/07/2012 at 18:17:02

Yes, I thought all along that the Yobo money would pay for Pienaar,

Proves the point that if we want anyone else for money then "someone" will have to leave first.

The board of this great club are a disgrace, never put a penny in and are clearly only in it for a massive profit.

Fuckwits one and all.

Anthony Martin
764 Posted 19/07/2012 at 19:05:22

What I love about us blues. I have travelled the world in my capacity of a sailor. When people see someone wearing the same shirts as their own they don't bat an eyelid. Whereas us Evertonians would cross the road to shake a hand with a fellow blue. Band of brothers. Not manufactured.

Danny Broderick
775 Posted 19/07/2012 at 20:22:49

Clarence,
Send the club an e-mail. I don't know if it will do any good,but they need a bit of a kick up the arse to do anything. We need all the extra revenue we can get..,

Clarence Yurcan
778 Posted 19/07/2012 at 20:33:58

Danny, that's a good idea, I may well do so

Gareth Fieldstead
786 Posted 19/07/2012 at 20:52:04

Two quick points:

I also experienced the same thing in 2004, I happened to emigrate at the same time that we signed Cahill. I spoke with two of my local sport shops encouraging them to stock our kits as I was so confident Cahill would have a great season and that his influence at international level would only grow. I also contacted the club about the potential revenue they could raise with Cahill's increasing profile; I never got a reply.

Secondly, as I have commented on a previous thread it is unbelievable that the board was willing to take such a huge loss on Yakubu but are prepared to haggle over a million for a player that has been deemed surplus since 2009. Hopefully he will now go and we can use whatever we get towards Pienaar.

Bobby Thomas
789 Posted 19/07/2012 at 21:27:43

Gareth, that Yak deal was one of the worst bits of business we have ever done. A club that constantly pleads poverty taking a £10 million drop on a player is stunningly bad business. If we knocked back £6 million from West Ham we needed our heads reading. He had completely lost interest, was taking the piss and was the size of a house.

Mark Lennon
792 Posted 19/07/2012 at 21:51:55

Looks as if Hoilett gone to QPR! What is going on with our club? Good young midfielders become available and we don't even make so much as a move!!

Mark Griffiths
794 Posted 19/07/2012 at 21:59:17

Dan and Clarence, where exactly do you both live? I have spent a lot of time in New York (Long Island - Baldwin, Seaford, Hicksville) as my wife is from there and we are moving back in about 5 years when I complete my degree and masters, although probably eastern Pennsylvania (as close to L.I. As possible without having to pay 500k for a half decent house and area!)

Dan Parker
798 Posted 19/07/2012 at 22:21:52

Mark, I live in Manhattan, Murray Hill in fact. I tend to watch the footy in my local whilst enjoying a quiet fry-up and banter with my mates who support other clubs rather than the major 'soccer' bars. I went to the pre-season games in Chicago a few years ago, that was a top day out with fellow Toffees. Always a pleasure to meet and spend time with!

Let's hope we dont' lose any of our players as the transfer window closes and we have a decent season. COYB!

Kevin Day
800 Posted 19/07/2012 at 23:07:10

Going on the name of the post “99%” deal done, its the 1% that worries me.

Eric Myles
816 Posted 20/07/2012 at 02:42:22

Sam #743, if it does provide the money for Pienaar's return then nobody on here could complain that we sold Yobo for Peanuts!

Clarence Yurcan
820 Posted 20/07/2012 at 03:59:15

Mark, I live in Queens and work in Manhattan.

Dan, your mention of the Nike shop near Central Park and whether our shirt is in it sparked my curiosity, so I took a walk up there after work to see. Predictably, no Everton shirt in sight. Only club shirts I saw were Man Utd, Arsenal, Barcelona, Inter and PSG. (Must've rush-shipped that one in during the past week for all the bandwagon fans.)

I'm sure Everton management fell for some Nike pitch about how they'd get our shirt into stores across the world, which anyone could have predicted would not happen. As another poster wrote earlier, we would have been better off with Le Coq Sportif; at least it made us unique

Mark Griffiths
830 Posted 20/07/2012 at 07:36:00

A couple of years ago, I was walking in Manhattan with an Everton top on and 2 people (Americans) asked me if they could get the top in NY, I said I had no idea but they said they followed us as their parents and grandparents followed them, so they are out there.

You never know, I might look you guys up to watch a game when we move!

Clarence, do you live near Forrest Hills? I know that area fairly well.

Eric Myles
834 Posted 20/07/2012 at 08:10:40

I bet if the RS sign Dempsey they'll be marketing themselves over there better than we have been.

John Crook
840 Posted 20/07/2012 at 08:54:31

Shame about Dempsey going there, he would of been an ideal Cahill replacement. Just when I though Howard said he was going to be on the blower to him and persuade him to come here...

James Cadwaladr
844 Posted 20/07/2012 at 09:33:20

Of course they will Eric. Their Chairman is American, Ours is from Weatherfield.

Errol Stafford
848 Posted 20/07/2012 at 10:06:42

It's been said many times before, but it really is a sad state of affairs when we can't even afford £2.5m for a player.

Hull City bought someone for £2.6m yesterday! Southampton, who were in administration a few years ago can afford £6m players having just been promoted. We are even losing out on "Free" Agents we should have been in for like Hoilett, Clyne, Gebre Selassie.

The following are no longer on the wage bill from last season: McFadden, Hanhemann, Stracq, Drenthe, Baxter, Silva, Forshaw, Wallace, (Pienaar, Donovan). Surely that has freed up wages for at least 3 decent Frees or Loans, or do the banks have us even tighter by the gonads than we think and are squeezing harder?

With Sir Alex admitting he is looking to sign a left-back, it looks like our worst fears could materialise and Baines is off-loaded. Anything less than £17m would be scandalous. If it does happen, Neil Taylor from Swansea or Izziguerre from Celtic to replace him – not Richardson or Ziegler.

Yet another depressing transfer window for us Blues.

Gareth Fieldstead
862 Posted 20/07/2012 at 12:47:43

Unbelievable with regards to Hoillet, the press claim he has agreed to wages of 50,000 a week, it would be interesting to find out what they were prepared to pay Rodellega. Maybe it is the fee to Blackburn that is the stumbling block? Some reports suggest it is around 3 million? Bobby couldn't agree more, truly one of the worst pieces of transfer business the club has ever done.

Noel Early
863 Posted 20/07/2012 at 13:09:01

I'm starting to fall in love with the Blue Union... have the banks got such a hold over us that we can't even get free signings in like all the players mentioned above?

The club is showing nothing but incompetence as regards the marketing side and other aspects on how to run a football club. Mark my words, Leighton Baines will complete his move to Man Utd on the last day of August at 11:59 pm, it's getting so predictable at this stage. And we will just sit back and let it happen. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum — don't make me laugh.

Dan Parker
865 Posted 20/07/2012 at 13:37:15

That sucks Clarence, perhaps I'll check in a few weeks and see if they have any but I very much doubt it. It was the first thing I thought of when the Nike deal was announced, what a crock of shit we don't push them to sell our shirts globally. Man U may perhaps shift more shirts as they're brand is more developed but we are a major Premier League club with a rich history, the market's there waiting to be tapped! What was the point of all those pre-season friendlies in the States if we're not going to build on it.

Dave Weston
866 Posted 20/07/2012 at 13:27:43

Regarding kits etc over in the USA you only have to look at the kit deal we got via Kitbag and Nike (less than £3 million over 3 seasons). Whoever is in charge of marketing now (I don't know because of back room changes), they have not got a clue of how to market the club in the UK never mind abroad. (What ever happened to BK's mate Rocky?)

The Yobo deal is almost complete – what a joke that has been. He has been playing in Turkey for two years basically for free. The option-to-buy fee initially agreed was supposedly £5 million; now it is reported at £1-£2 million – that's not enough to cover the Pienaar deal – maybe enough for his personal terms but not the fee. Seems that some of the best deals Moyes has made have been undermind by deals like the Yak and Yobo give-aways.

Sam Hoare
868 Posted 20/07/2012 at 14:00:06

Sad to lose out on the likes of Clyne and Hoilett. Think that like Moses they will become decent players who at the least could be sold for profit.

I don't think any of us exepected it to be much different and yet its depressing when you think that teams like chelsea (who came 5th last season) have bought in Marin, Hazard, De Bruyne with Oscar set to join too and even the likes of West Ham, QPR, Southampton and Reading are comfortably outspending us.

Reckon Pienaar in (if it happens) will be the last piece of business we do unless of course we sell any of the biggies.

Ged Simpson
869 Posted 20/07/2012 at 14:30:58

We're broke and stil probably more reasonably optimistic than the Shite fans

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha haHa ha ha ha ha ha ha
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha haHa ha ha ha ha ha haa ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha haHa ha ha ha ha ha ha
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha haHa ha ha ha ha ha ha

Sorry - Friday dragging...

Clarence Yurcan
871 Posted 20/07/2012 at 15:01:25

Mark, I live in Astoria but will actually be moving just over the bridge to New Jersey.
Dan, agree with you, there will always be Man U shirts in stores everywhere, but it's pathetic the Nike store was selling PSG shirts and not ours! I've never seen anyone with PSG gear on here, the overwhelming majority of Americans probably have no idea what PSG is or even what sport they play! But many know of Everton due to Howard/Donovan connections, yet you can't but an Everton shirt anywhere here, but PSG shirts are readily available in midtown Manhattan! What a joke!

Jimmy Sørheim
907 Posted 20/07/2012 at 20:11:30

The way we just gave away Yakubu and losing out on our invested 11.25 million is the biggest scandal I have ever seen at Everton.
Moyes broke the record on losing money, even the Rooney deal was really a loss, as he was worth 50 million easy.
To then sell for half of that makes one wonder, what if we had held out for 50 million then we would have some money left today.

We are losing on Yobo because Moyes took offense with Yobo for next to nothing, and now we are selling hiom for less then he is really worth.because of it.

James Flynn
914 Posted 20/07/2012 at 21:10:23

Jimmy - Sometimes I wonder if you type these things laughing. That you don't really mean it; just winding fellow TWers up.

You don't like Moyes. Fine. You're not alone. But, for the last time; Moyes, Fergy, Pep, Mourhinho, Wenger (yes, him too) under no circumstances control the finance of the clubs. None of them. They are employees.

And are you actually calling Yak's departure a worse financial disgrace than Rooney's departure? Seriously? Yak's departure hurt us at some minimal, temporary level. Rooney's departure had massive immediate and long term effects on both EFC and ManU's next 7-8 years.

Tell me you were joking. You were, right?

Ian Bennett
916 Posted 20/07/2012 at 21:23:54

Erroll 848 - I suspect that the lack of player movement is more down to loan covenants and shifting players off the wage bill than anything else. Yobo out pienaar in and that's probably it. Yes we need the cash, but I bet we have stay within set financial criteria to keep the bank/ loan man sweet.

Jimmy Sørheim
931 Posted 21/07/2012 at 01:29:11

Sometimes I do like to rile people up, but I feel that Moyes made two big mistakes in the selling price of both Rooney and Yakubu. I have like what Moyes has made this club into, but that does not mean I forget when he screws up..

Yes, I agree the bigger screw up in a 10 year period is the Rooney sale, but for these last couple of seasons the Yakubu sale was a shot in the foot, as we lost our £11.25 million when we needed it the most. We would be better off keeping him instead of Saha.

You just can not sit back and just accept huge mistakes when they happen, Moyes needs to learn, but in my mind he has not learned from the Rooney deal at all. Also Bill Kenwright is to blame here, perhaps just as much as Moyes, but Moyes is our manager and he needs to take the brunt of the blame and learn from the past.

Rooney was at the time the best player that had ever played for this club, and we sold him for "peanuts" really. There are too many fans that have forgotten all about it, but I never forget, it was the bigest rip-off in Moyes's 10 years at the club.

Yakubu was really bad too and just goes to show that something is very wrong in both the minds of Moyes and Kenwright. Kenwright had the amount right first, £50 million, but then he caved and ripped us off. I am bitter and I have the right to be, so does every other Evertonian with a memory.

We are in trouble now because we have raised our wages, but not been able to take in enough to balance it all. Rooney and Yakubu were two bad deals, we are not getting that money back, we have a yearly loss now of almost £10 million, both Moyes and Kenwright need to sharpen up a lot. After all, there are not that many players left to sell to balance it back up again.

Moyes has cost us a lot of money too, his contract is huge and is not deserving.

James Flynn
933 Posted 21/07/2012 at 01:58:11

Jimmy - Moyes has zero say in the selling price. He could, and probably does ask for x number pounds to work with. But the owners negotiate the deals. It's not Moyes' money. Why insist the sale price has anything to do with him? He's an employee.

I think we lost money on Yak. But it's not as simple as we paid £11.25M, sold for £1.5M, therefore losing £9.75M. To you and me reading the headlines, it seems so. But some of that £11.25M is disipated over the 4 seasons we had him. And, again, the owners determined that, not Moyes.

That Moyes wanted him gone even the Yak acknowledged in an interview this season. Kenright etal made the deal and agreed to a price. Not Moyes.

Jimmy Saville
942 Posted 21/07/2012 at 05:52:39

Clarence 871. Dan 865 and others. Just to provide some insight on Everton jerseys and Niketown in NY. The reason Nike can't sell Everton jerseys in the US is because the kitbag deal signed with the club is currently not structured to selling internationally. The reason a few PSG jerseys are in the store are because PSG have a game in NY so they received a few to sell just for the game.

Pablo Connelly
954 Posted 21/07/2012 at 09:40:35

I have been wondering why the Yobo deal has been 99% done for about a week or so. Then I realised it took 3 years to get to 99% so roughly speaking I get that to about 2 week or so for every 1%! So only another week or so to go, folks.... wahooo!!

Dave Weston
128 Posted 22/07/2012 at 14:55:55

As I said (866) the club marketing department and Kitbag have not got a clue. Why negotiate a deal that does not allow international sales is beyond belief.

As for the transfer policy, as I said the before, negotiators BK plus Elstone have undermined Moyes on a couple transfer sales.

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