Everton announce new Barkley contract

It is more likely to be a significant contract extension to Ross Barkley or similar .

I would not have thought, that would merit a special announcement in dramatic style, but funnily James McCarthy is being Â’ sniffed Â’ by SpongeBob Squarehead at Manure !

We will all be more aware shortly, fingers crossed it IS good news, but then again IT IS US !

1am here. This would want to be good.

While itis great news for us , did it really merit all the smoke and mirrors and drumrolls to boot ?

Funnily enough, I expected it to be about something more sinister, with Ross's extension the smokescreen !

Things are looking up !

While itis great news for us , did it really merit all the smoke and mirrors and drumrolls to boot ?

Funnily enough, I expected it to be about something more sinister, with Ross's extension the smokescreen !

Things are looking up !

While itis great news for us , did it really merit all the smoke and mirrors and drumrolls to boot ?

Funnily enough, I expected it to be about something more sinister, with Ross's extension the smokescreen !

Things are looking up !

With all these Derek's about we just need a Dr.Who to turn up...

Congratulations Ross COYB!!!

Great to see a bright talented young Evertonian so committed to our wonderful club which he describes as home. How refreshing.

After his breakout season last year we all hope that Ross now brings to the table the kind of consistency that really will cement his arrival in the Premier League.

Under RM he was given the opportunities that the previous gaffer denied him, and some may argue the value in that, but Ross now has the world at his feet and one hopes that Everton will start to reap the benefit.

Don't need a press conference for that kind of news....

Great news but hardly news. Why isn't it a 5 or 6 year deal anyway?

Also, what exactly are SSN saying about Lukaku?

Everyone was expecting a 'significant club announcement' as the tagline said in the Echo.

To me, that is a major story such as a club record signing, a new stadium deal, or the club being sold.

Fucking imbeciles.

You take the art of a winge to new depths

Keep getting time out server cannot be accessed etc.!

Don't suppose I have missed anything , did Lukaku sign while I was in Cyberlimbosphere ?

Ah well , it was worth atry ! :-)

Maybe this site should be renamed Toffeedoom the way a sizeable chunk of posters are behaving at present.

It's very good news. It's not what we hoped for, but I think any MAJOR transfer business would have been leaked, so it's not too surprising that it is an internal news story, and one we were told would happen at some point. We can hope that this is the first step to locking in our young core... and maybe soon bringing in a significant young forward talent... OK a big Belgian... to lock in a very young and exciting spine – a Ross and a Romelu until 2019. Fingers crossed!

Kevin, I don't think they're imbeciles, just playing the PR game.

I also recall lots of other clubs having press conferences when their big players sign contracts....why are people reacting so poorly when we do it? Take a breathe lads.

A mutual agreement that we will allow him to leave next year and Ross knows that Everton will get more money by being tied to a longer contract.

Did Fellaini not sign a new 5 year deal a year or so before he was sold?

Hardly significant news really!

"EVERTON SIGN A PLAYER WHO ALREADY PLAYS FOR THEM"

Or should that be "whom" I never know

Also, this should stop all the rumors of a City bid before the window closes and we can focus on trying to secure the champions league place. It would also mean that any bids for him next summer would have to be on the very large side; so makes good business sense.

Although, I will admit to a knee-jerk reaction of WTF was a press conference used for this? IÂ’ve had time to think about it, and consider it to be a well spent use of resources and adequate fanfare.

If Ross wasnÂ’t our player and we were signing him for a significant transfer fee with a 4-year deal... would so many people object to a press conference?

IÂ’ve been harsh on us this transfer window, and personally donÂ’t think Lukaku will be coming, but, in signing Ross up, weÂ’ve got him for the next few years at least and, more importantly, weÂ’ve protected our asset. If his development continues, the clubÂ’s sitting on 𧴜 million potentially. So I think itÂ’s a bit harsh, the negativity, especially as some were pointing out recently how he hasnÂ’t even signed a new deal.

FFs even The Lord Major of Liverpool agrees it was over the top.

Allow me to quote a portion of his comments:
"I've tried not to comment on the abject level some posters descend to... but to bitch and moan ten to the dozen, for what seems like months on end, about the lack of new signings, and then state that you are "disgusted" with this excellent singing of Mo Besic... well it sickens me to the core. What the fuck is wrong with you people?"

I frequently feel the same way, and a number of you are doing exactly the same thing again in this thread. Knock it off.

Well played I say!

Barkley signs a new contract and states how he loves the club but some posters feel the need criticize the way in which it was announced. Who gives a shit how it was announced, our top youngster just committed himself to the club.

Things arenÂ’t perfect, but you donÂ’t have to be negative about every story. This is one of them!

That does not sound like a player who is planning to leave next year. Anything is possible, things could change, and all that. But he wouldnÂ’t say such a thing if he were already thinking about moving to another club down the road.

Good motivational tool, build his confidence that he IS a top player and deserves notoriety.

Contract announcement means weÂ’ll get top whack if the worst should happen, and tells our rivals/neutrals to beware/admire.

Now get Lukaku back in and a couple more and IÂ’ll be vaguely optimistic of our chances next season. WeÂ’re not going to win the league but we can certainly hold our own against the Â’topÂ’ clubs.

Stop being so miserable, weÂ’ll have another press conference when Lukaku signs!

it is great news, but not news worthy of a "major news conference"

Nothing to do with negativity, just voicing our opinion on the bullshit way it was presented beforehand.

Where was BesicÂ’s news conference? He is an actual new signing.

No-one is saying itÂ’s like a new signing. When I got the text from the Club it was welcome news indeed.

Whatever the future brings, it brings. For now one of the CountryÂ’s best young talents gets to put an Everton shirt on. Made up, me, lad.

Doom and gloom merchants please see the positive side of this.

2013-14 was his breakthrough season and he showed enough to become (almost) a regular and gain caps for England. He reinforced his reputation at the World Cup.

Now he has to add consistency to his game and score a few more of those scorchers. But the trouble is that, if he becomes a real star, the clamour for him to move to ’a big club’ will become overwhelming – and probably irresistible.

LetÂ’s just enjoy him whilst heÂ’s ours!

When there are things which are wrong, then letÂ’s complain. When they are good, lets celebrate.

Ross Barkley signs a new 4 year deal = Celebrate!

Paul Smith 6: "IMO that was a cynical move by the club to placate the fan base. And itÂ’s worked, the fan base are polarized."

It worked! Clearly Smithy you did not feel the need to comb through the thread before hitting submit.

This ’placate’ line is utter dogsbollocks! So, at the same time as we pin down the brightest English talent for two or three decades, reports long term – ’reports’, I know – are that the Lukaku deal seems – ’seems, I know – to be ever closer.

This Â’placateÂ’ bollocks is somewhat like the Bobby Rio holiday window stripping line: so, we cannot get our starsÂ’ contracts extended at the same time as we bring in new players?

I wonder if conspiracy theorist Smithy – it was the papists who burnt down London in 1666, the papists I tell ya – (and all the other long-faced whiners on here – he’s one of ours, fuck me, one of ours!) will have the good grace and decency to come on here and put his hands up in the air and say, "I got it all wrong, guv" when incoming arrives, as it will. I very much doubt it.

Brill news, great day for the club, spring in the step and all that. CanÂ’t wait now for the other bits of good news coming our way.

Come on, Smithy lad – they haven’t told us you know, they haven’t – aliens, aliens in Eastbourne and the Dakota Hills... aliens, but they won’t tell us....

Chin up, have a smile, go for a walk and talk blue — coz these are good times to be blue.

But when this news was greeted with a hastily arranged press conference, a live link, and local news channels reporting Â’significant developments at Finch Farm,Â’ I expected something out of the ordinary. ItÂ’s good news that Ross has signed, but the fanfare was way OTT.

If we sign Lukaku, will Bobby be running around in the nip? FFS.

Positive positive positive.

Now bring on Lukaku.

What impact will this pantomime presentation have on Besic, let alone Coleman and Barry, who was just ushered in and why give Besic a 5 year contract and only get Ross to commit to 4.

I fully expected this to be about Lukaku unless it WAS intended to be Lukaku and that fell through at the last minute so Ross was ushered in.

Also why no details on James McCarthy.

IÂ’d also like to add that those of you moaning need to take a long hard look in the mirror and ask yourself if you actually SUPPORT this great club of ours, or are you more determined to be proved right with all your whines over the years? I cannot understand why there would be one negative comment on this thread, yet it is full of them. Maybe one of you should set up your own website where you can all hang out and berate everything the club does together, so SUPPORTERS of Everton donÂ’t have to put up with it.

It is good news and was all about sending out the right message to the Sky darlings and us supporters that we have ambition and we intend to give them a run for their money.

On a negative note Â’ahemÂ’ our total wage bill for the players must be climbing at a rate of knots with all these improved contracts, will it affect our spending on new players, it well might.

As far as iÂ’m concerned this is great news and I mean great as in AWESOME! Barkley is the most hyped young English player in the country, all the big clubs would love to have him and there have been rumblings in the press all summer about him. Those rumblings would have gotten louder the longer he went without signing a contract and the closer his old deal got to expiry.

Whether they hold a press conference to announce it or whether they simply announce it on the OS with an interview is by the by - just be delighted that Ross has signed a new deal, it is a big statement of intent and it will go down well with current and prospective players alike.

Maybe the disappointment is because some expected it to be news of Lukaku. Compared to our record transfer deal it isnÂ’t as big, fair enough, but it is still excellent news and I hope Ross isnÂ’t reading some of these negative posts.

The interview got us on SSN and will have impressed Besic, Lukaku, Atsu, Henen, Galloway and every lad in the academy.

Wonder if Alex McCarthy was watching. Yes Alex, we are a big club with superstar players.

However, I am so upset by the negativity on this thread that I am forced to come out of hibernation to comment.

Paul Livesey - 92 - many sincere thanks for putting this whole story into perspective. We are Evertonians, this signing is something well worth celebrating.

Now I am going back to sleep

I thought it a bit strange, when I eventually got back on to the site , when I saw that several fellow TW posters had also had Â’ double posts Â’ .

I suspect they were possibly updating the site , or , all of us Â’ news starved TWÂ’ers Â’ stampeded toeards the site at the same time and it was overloaded or whatever !

No doubt Julian would know better on that score , than you or I .

I just think a press conference and count down on the OS raised a few peoples hopes and they are a bit disappointed that it wasnÂ’t a signing.

Dummies out of pram sort of thing.
ItÂ’ll soon be forgotten about when Lukaku signs and we have his face blasted into the night sky, Batman style.

The count down etc was excessive

Gawd knows what it will be like if we sign a top player

What was interesting was to witness the speculation when we thought it was significant news - to be truly significant good news it would need to be connected with a new stadium, new investment helping buy players or a massive investment allowing us to take over Liverpool FC and raze them to the ground! That would be significant good news!!!

As for the current squad, we are down on our numbers from last season. So how we are going to cope being in four competitions, I’ll never know. The finger, as it is every year, is fecking Kenwright. All I want him to do every year is to come out and explain our woeful transfer attempts – then fuck off.

But I've been gnawing on it for a bit now, and I think I've finally decided it makes sense.

This gave Ross - one of the emerging stars of the English game - a chance to tell everyone very publicly how happy he is to play for the Blues and Roberto.

This was a recruitment PR opportunity. I think it was an opportunity to tell Lukaku (among others): "You're worried about our ambition? Here, we just tied down one of the best talents in England for the next four years to keep getting you scoring opportunities. Now do you think we're serious?"

Okay, so that's the "glass is half-full" version of my thoughts anyway...

Have Betfair really suspended betting on Rom? I can't believe we'll get him.

Everything but everything is over-hyped and aimed at 'managing our expectations. The one NEW signing is billed as the 'best he's ever seen' on the strength of a couple of performances for some unpronounceable country whilst new contracts for players who were here last season are hailed as 'master-strokes'.

No wonder our neighbours laugh at us.

Ps I'm talking about Wigan. They've seen it all !

Seriously though, while most of us probably expected something slightly different it is still great news.

I had Talksport on the car radio when it was announced and for a second or two had the horrible feeling they were going to say he had been sold.

Now that would well and truly had got everyone in a right rage! Thankfully it wasn't the case.

You are talking rubbish, do you believe a current player signing an extension of his current contract warrants the 'significant' tag on a press conference. I think not, RS fans will be pissing themselves no doubt, not that I care a jot about that personally. Does it make Barkley less likely to go if he has a great season, grow up FFS.

You are too easily gratified, Evertonians are too easily gratified in general it wasn't talksport who built it up, it was the club.

The Masterplan,as planned by the master,is progressing.
The best day for many a year the day we signed Roberto.

Barry is now a permanent member of the club and there remains a good chance that Romelu might join him. Add the signings of McGready and Besic to counter-balance the sales of Jelavic, Anichebe and Heitinga. and I personally would say that all-in-all that is quite a turn around in just over 12 months, now people can argue about the quality of the incoming players all they want but few could argue with those that have left the club..

If and when we add the necessary quality striker into the mix things will look a lot brighter than some seem to see it at the moment. I would advocate that those who cannot see anything good about the club either on or off the pitch should ask themselves why they bother to buy season tickets or match-day tickets in the first place and perhaps re-consider their position.

I am as cynical as the next Evertonian but I don't constantly focus on all of the negative aspects of the club or the team. It is the easiest thing in the world to find something that suits your world view and then harp on about it, but supporting the team even if you don't necessarily support the club's hierarchy is not always easy but it can be a lot more fun if you at least try to do so.

If other club's supporters are taking the mickey so what they have done that for donkeys years and would continue to do it even if we spent 𧴜m every year it's the game always has been always will be. My opinion is the more they laugh the more we will enjoy beating their expensively assembled teams.

Lukaku will be next to sign I reckon. . But he'll prob be shit once he signs for us permanently; )

Preferably Lukaku permanent and the other 2 as loans.

I still have the feeling that Roberto has another trick (maybe two) up his sleeve to surprise & intrigue us with before the window closes.

He is continually positive, but it's not hollow words.

If you check the sky sports website there are already plenty of posts saying "it will only push his valuation up" and "he will still be sold in 12 months" and "he would have been better signing for us" blah blah blah!!!

It was an announcement from the club FFS!! As I said earlier on imagine the uproar if the announcement had been that he had been sold? I can just imagine Billy boy standing to the entrance of finch farm trying to explain the sale of Ross ala Kevin Keegan when Newcastle sold Andy Cole!!

Jealousy can be the root of all evil and right now that's what fans of most other clubs are, because we have the hottest property in English football since Mr Rooney, the only difference being Ross is as loyal as they come and I honestly believe he will be with us for many years to come.

Then you revert back to type, we finished in 5th place last season and you were telling us all we were certain to be 7th or lower because we had now a crap manager.
Your still having sniping comments at Martinez, in a so far a vain attempt to discredit him.
Seems like you'll not be happy until he falls flat on his face and the team fail to reach expectations, your some supporter!

Good on the lad staying with the club and not having some greedy agent engineering a transfer for his cut

So in other words, we probably have him for one more season, fingers crossed for two, beyond that, well...

Also 4 years is not what I would call a long term deal, 3-4 is pretty standard these days. Anyway, he's here for a while unless we're offered silly money, which is the main thing.

Now onto stonesey....

"When you start thinking 'I need to score more than seven goals this season' or 'I need to do this' or '˜I need to do that', then you can lose focus.

"When you lose focus on what you have to do to be in the first-team, then everything becomes very complicated.

"For Ross, it will be the same as every other player in the squad: you need to earn the right to be in the first 11."

'Spin' has become a dirty word in politics but nobody does it better than the acolytes of Toffee Blue Bill. What will they do when Romelu signs on ? Provide prayer mats for us to pay homage?

Sunderland spent 㿗m on Johnson, Borini, Gordon and Fletcher.

Hull spent 㾸m on Jelavic and Long.

West Ham spent 㿈m on Jarvis and Carroll.

Liverpool spent a lot of money on a load of sh*t.

Newcastle spent about 㿼m on a plague of frogs who can't jump and will never turn into princes.

Fulham spent about 㿀m on Mitroglou and Johnson.

QPR bought relegation for about 𧴜m

Norwich got Van Wolf, Hooper, Fer and Elmander for about 㿀m

Soton just sold everything and their soul.

Why oh why can't we panic-buy our way into mediocrity like the rest of our rivals???

I'm in the former. For those who don't realise, the club announced a significant press conference to be held. Then they put a countdown clock on the site to the conference. TW fell over, Twitter went crazy. Then they announced a contract extension.

Brilliant news, no-one is disputing that but they created too much of a circus around it.

But come on, both the club and the manager are hardly performing badly at this time.

As far as the managers spin is concerned, he does lay the superlatives on a bit thick at times but it cant be easy having a microphone stuck under your nose every 5 mins.

Fire away if we fail, but do us a favour and throw in a few compliments in the meantime.

Maybe some sort of cliche about bringing a dagger to a jousting contest??

I remember as a very small boy watching the Holy Trinity with my dad and some old farts shouting "Get yer finger out, Kendall, you useless sod", or "Get a move on, Bally, you ginger ball bag" etc.... Some things never change.

Orrrrrr Martinez upbeat comments?

And that is good news because we all know Ross could be a marquee player and we haven't had too many of those in the last decade or two. Whether it warranted a big press conference is another matter. I would have thought not, but it's not a big issue either way.

Unlike many, I'm not champing at the bit with Lukaku because I'm not convinced he is worth 㿄m. I thought he looked a bit of a square peg in a round hole at times last year and he is not exacly blessed with sublime control. However, I'll trust RM's judgement given he's got most things right.

I'm also willing to be patient on transfers but this is the last window I'm prepared to see no significant net spend, given all the bullsh$t of the previous windows. We have to expand the squad, it is most certainly not that good and right now, even if we signed Lukaku, we would still be no stronger than last year, but with an additional and very demanding competition to play in.

Good on you, son... and good on Everton for shouting it so well!

I'm not from Liverpool but I absolutely love the city. I also enjoy Goodison but away games are so much better for me these days. The expectation, the negativity, the pessimism, the hounding of certain player and/or coaching staff... it really gets to me, probably more so because I'm not there every week. The away games are 10 times better in my opinion, which is a bit sad really.

On topic... Ross, Seamus, Leighton, James, John, Kevin and Tony going nowhere (despite a pathetic rumour of McCarthy to utd the day after we sign a CM), that's a great summer so far.

We are def going to sign a striker, hopefully Lukaku. This should fill us all with excitement and anticipation, not doom and gloom. If we do end up with Bendtner and Cisse, I'll be the first to post my letter bomb to Bill but, until then, can we all just relax and admire our chickens?!

I like many others thought it might be the confirmation of the Lukaku deal but this drama will carry on into the summer. Every year is the same drama with transfers. Thank god the transfer window closes as it forces the club to act with a deadline and puts the fans out of their misery.

It is refreshing to hear the manager tell the press we need three attacking players. If the club could sign Lukaku and players on loan, I believe this could be the best squad in quality and depth in 25 years supporting Everton. I know myself and others moan about the chairman but I know he has best intentions for the club.

Best Wishes to All

I don't expect our current squad to win any particular game, but I believe we can win every game, regardless of the opposition. I've never had that same belief in any team in my life-time. I'll get back to you on that in 2-3 weeks!

Keep the faith! COYB

Re-signing a current player, no matter how brilliant, is good news but you've got to admit, we were expecting something else/more!

Some say it was a masterstroke in positive psychology by Roberto in giving Ross the attention and fanfare he rightly deserves with this announcement.

From where I was watching, Roberto came over rather low key, seemed less articulate and enthusiastic than usual. Overall a damp squib to be frank.

Nevertheless, I live in hope and look forward to this great club making more announcements that further cement our intent and ambition to get back to where we once were.

COYBs.

Ross signing a contract extension for me is a great great bit of news. I also think it is probably worth putting out a conference too. But I’m a little bit annoyed that we haven’t signed up a few players like Rom and Traore too, so when you see a conference due you can’t help but wonder if Romelu has come home!

Frustration is kicking in now and I can see why. I’m hoping that it ends very soon with the signing of Lukaku, then I’m sure ToffeeWeb will become a happy place once again.

Glad I fell asleep and didn't wait up.

Of course Ross on a 4-year deal is great news but lets not delude ourselves, this was yet another sad, ham fisted attempt by the club's owners to disguise their shortcomings. I wish this is phase 1 of a magnificent multi-phase PR strategy that in the course of the next 2 weeks reveals 2 top class strikers, a speedster on the wings and quality squad members.

http://www.espnfc.com/everton/story/1965180/barkley-recalls-rooneys-exit

It's easy to forget that, 10 years ago, players of Ross's calibre wouldn't have seen a future at Everton, but now they do.

Money talks of course but I'm sure he could easily have got more at the likes of Man City and Co.

I'm chuffed we have Roberto, he's proven me wrong and his quality has shone through. Here's to a promising campaign...

Now I have had time to reflect on this before commenting, I am with the majority, it's sticking two fingers up to the media and their Sky darlings, it sends out a strong message we are no longer a selling club.

Granted it does not mean that he cannot be sold but, if we land Lukaku, it sends out all the right vibes; we do not need to sell to land Lukaku.

I am sure the media and Sky are quietly hoping we do not get Lukaku; after all the moaning last season about our loan signings, it would be great if we bought the guy.

I also agree could do a lot worse than put a cheeky ٤ million bid in for Remy — I bet the guy plays more games than Kone, whichever club he signs for.

Players are not cattle anymore and managers and clubs needs to look after them the best we can. Otherwise they'll be off where they're more appreciated. Here's one for you armchair managers, 'Accept the fact that we have to treat almost anybody as a volunteer'. Just because Ross is on our books and getting paid doesn't mean you treat him merely like a production line. Humans thrive on the good feel factor. Give Ross the number 10 jersey.

To hear the lad talk about his love for Everton was well worth having a press conference.

We have just signed a player who will be the best English player in the Prem,a lad who after this season will be among the top players in England.
If that doesnÂ’t encourage positive comments I donÂ’t know what would

This thread comes down to expectations regarding the clubs ability / desire to make new signings that will improve the team / squad.
Just because some on here are disappointed with the clubs showing so far does not mean they are negative towards Ross signing, far from it I would say.

So you either believe this was a major statement of intent by the club and a message to all that we don't sell our best players

Or

It is an attempt to mask our failings and an attempt to pacify the fans.

We all have our own views on this and unfortunately for me the current boards history does not fill me with optimism that it was the first one,

Your certainly right about a number of posters here who were expecting "something more" and have said so with comments along the lines of "Good news but not what I was hoping for", so fair comment.

However, what a significant number of posters myself included are rightfully tackling are the serial & perpetual "wet blankets". Those who always post negatively no matter what the issue, no matter how good the news, these curmudgeons will always post yet another negative comment which blindly and deliberately oversteps any & all positive aspects of an issue no matter how significant in order to simply pick fault with the merest detail.

Given that these perfectionists apparently know absolutely everything, how come they are not so immensely wealthy that they have not bought the club in order to run it "perfectly" ?

The reason is simply that they are "armchair trolls".

I didnÂ’t agree with the moaning multitudes on this site that believe everything the club does is substandard or some kind of conspiracy to line Bill KenwrightÂ’s pockets. I for one am glad he is in charge and think he is a saviour of our tradition and in the end we will prevail over the other rich gobshites who will eventually leave our shores and a broken mess behind them.

You are in a small minority there

But credit where it's due. One way or another (I can't make head nor tail of payment details), Kenwright got the manager his main target yesterday.

I've been a long time critic of Kenwright, but I'm having a day off today.