Barkley stuns Chelsea with late u-turn

So what does this mean? Has he been told, due to the injury, to wait until January and go cheaper? Does he want another club?

Or, one hopes, the idiot has seen sense?

Any news on a striker?

I hope it's the former and not the latter but I would have thought a Chelsea move would have been what he was always wanting??? Confused.com...

Just means we will get a smaller fee, he will get a bigger signing on fee and Levy will have done a 'Pienaar' on us. And put one over on Chelsea which he will love.

I'd love to think Ross wants to play for Everton, but I can't see it.

He's looking to go to Spurs in January for pittance.
Mosh and Koeman will be fuming at Ross and understandably so.
It may have been the case that any potential striker coming in this evening was dependent on the £35 million. Who knows?

Maybe Ross, doesn't like Koeman, but he's probably the only manager who has helped/bullied a bit of consistency out of Barkley, since he started playing with the big boys? (Which is why I said it's up to the player)

It's still all conjecture, maybe it was this? Or maybe it was that? Either way he's still an Everton player, and he's going to fill a load more threads on ToffeeWeb, that's for sure!

Ross wants to play, and he wants to play for England. So, whatever changed his mind, I very much doubt it was purely finances. I was hoping it was footballing reasons from us, but Moshiri's comments show that not to be true.

I understand the big hand-out from Spurs next year but surely he's not Machiavellian enough to orchestrate this merely to cost us millions. It must have been embarrassing for him to just leave midway through the medical. Maybe I'm being optimistic, for once.

Also he is forgetting that he still has to live in the city with a lot of unhappy blues until he leaves.

I read today, Kenwright stepped in... was I seeing things?

I won't be surprised if, in January, if not before, he decides to stay and signed the new contract (if it is still on offer).

Koeman is a clown; sooner he goes, the better – and our super scout too.

He is skilful, two good feet, and can score goals – he'll be a legend. Come on, Ross, and COYB.

I might be deluded but I believe he's too good a real blue to let go.

If anyone wants to fuck off its Koeman.
Oh and take Moshiri with him, I said from the start he wouldn't be bankrolling the club without the other owners putting in an equal amount of money as him.
He's here to make money not to give it away.

I hope Barkley gets fit, forces his way back in and all us blues all get behind him, hopefully a new contract will follow. People questioning his motives are bang out of order for me. He is a boyhood blue under a regime that have tried to push him out. Moshiri made a fool of himself on live tv, I liked it better when he said nothing. Koeman has also singled him out at every opportunity. Barkley has been courageous to stand up for himself and say no. Chelsea and Spurs wanted to buy him don't forget, I didn't see them beating down the door for Klaassen or Rooney. Prove people wrong Ross lad, get fit and play your heart out.

“Maybe he got nervous about living in London? Well you can't live in Liverpool all your life.”

He aims to keep us competitive in the European places and to move us into the new stadium then sell us for a profit.

But keep on painting Koeman as the bad guy if that suits your agenda.

Christ, you would swear these guys haven't enough going for them, earning more in a week than the average Doctor or Nurse will earn in a lifetime of night shifts.

Sign up or fuck off.

He has refused to sign a contract with us.

Very believiebale.

Ross has said nothing and allowed himself to be made into the bad guy by the club. Meantime the manager slags him off in public. Let's see where Ross is at come January and what he says about things.

If true, that's what I call a man, not a wimp.

It would be more plausible if the club hadn't proudly announced a 'partnership'/£60m credit facility with a Chinese bank not so far back or if Moshiri's bezzie mouthpiece hadn't been banging on about the behemoth amounts the club were planning to splash out this summer, irrespective of player sales.

On the playing field are we now stronger than last season, very debatable and a no from me.
As I expected not a lot has changed.

If he's been tapped up by Levy he may find that promise a tad fragile if doesn't suit Levy to fulfill his side of the deal next year. Or maybe things just didn't feel right to him at Chelsea. None of us know.

However, his responsibility is only to himself - all he owes Everton is whatever's specified in his contract & no more.

If this was a foreign player on our books he'd be getting dogs abuse but people still want to see the best in Ross. He's a numbskull!

When things went wrong, he took the stick, mainly because he was local and Ball and Kendall were expensive imports. Ross, like Colin, has kept his counsel.He has been professional.

More importantly, how we missed him against Chelsea. Where was the inventiveness, the surging runs pulling two to three players out of position? We seem now just to have a blanket midfield of similar scampering, one-paced players.

This is not the time for vindictiveness and freezing him out. Ross's contract negotiations are not with the manager who should be big enough to realise this. Ronald Koeman's judgments should be purely football based. It would also help if he did not go public so often on private conversations he has had with Ross. It's called trust.

The ground move in my view will be interesting. perhaps

He has refused to,sign a new contract, goes to,the champions for a medical, then decides he doesn't want to play for a team who challenge for every major honour?

What kind of a fresh challenge is he really waiting for I wonder?

I don't know if refusing to be pressured into a move you might not want and being prepared to return to a workplace where you're probably going to be welcomed back as warmly as a great big wart on the gonads by your boss, can really be called 'cowardice'.

Not like Barkley has taken the 'easy' option here.

Was he really offered a massive deal? Is it just coincidence he decides to stay and no striker arrives? I really did think things were different until today but I am really not so sure about Moshiri after tonight. We have spent not much more than came in and have a majorly lopsided squad. Ross has been made to feel unwanted by the current regime and I think if the club gave the slightest sincere sign that he is wanted, he would sign in a heartbeat.

This could also backfire on Ross financially. After his snub tonight it seems highly unlikely Chelsea would come back for him which would leave Spurs as the only suitor among the top clubs. We all know Levy will drive down his wages to the lowest possible level. Ross could be reduced to touting himself around the mid-table clubs in an effort to prompt a bidding war. After tonight clubs may be wary about paying over the odds to a young man who appears unable to make the right decision on or off the pitch.

Everton gave a lot of mixed stories about the contract. It was offered to him late, and it spent very little time on the table. There is a lot that Everton are not saying here. Everything seems to be geared into making Ross into the bad guy. I am not believing everything the club is saying. You can believe what you want, but there's very little facts to go on here. Everything discussed here is conjecture.

Actually going to somewhere new and having his medical has brought it home and made him reconsider... it's actually brave to change his mind at that point instead of going with the flow.

Sign or be sold Ross? Well I'm saying nothing, but I'm not signing nothing either!

Okay, you want a fresh challenge? Well,if I'm not signing a new contract, isn't that obvious?

What kind of challenge are you after Ross, because the Champions of England, have just bid £30 Million for you kid?

I'm not sure yet, but I might be able to tell yer a little bit more after Christmas!

He presumably wants the move to Tottenham and has been convinced he should pass up the chance to play his way in to England contention - which he would have the best chance of doing at Everton of the options he has by the way.

Everything is conjecture. You don't have the facts and you are jumping to conclusions. No one has the full story here. You believe what you want, but I'm not at all happy with the way Everton have dealt with Barkley and I blame Koeman for him leaving.

Err, no.

Didn't think so.

How much evidence do I need Trevor? Just a shred of it, because I've not seen anything other than Koeman constantly bad mouthing Ross and singling him out in a way he's never done with any other player at Everton.

Therefore if the club are denigrating him in any way at all he has recourse to law in a blink.

Just saying.

The 'he had a medical and everything' part of Moshiri's statement hardly constitutes an imputation against the character of the individual.

"Ross Barkley's a toffee through and through"

all together now

"We still got a diamond called Ross Barkley . . . .

As for him being there in the first place, it was out of order. I said so at the time. Of course it's his own free time, but a world class player like cristiano Ronaldo would have been in bed at that time. And Ross should be aspiring to those standards. No doubt about it.

No striker. 3 defenders. And all midfielders including Barkley in a game. Exciting times...

You got it spot on

But not only shitting on Koeman he shits on everything Everton - from top to bottom

Agents get a bad name but nobody seems to be advising this kid. Maybe he thinks he's too good to need advice.

Koeman aside, if he had any respect for Everton he had 2 options

1. Sign a new contract at Everton
2. Sign a contract somewhere else prior to expiry of the transfer window and in doing so going with somewhat of a fond farewell and adding funds to our coffers.

He chose not to do either

In my mind he has elevated himself to the same level as McMahon

In simple terms - a swear word

Fin

Drive into work in my Blue Ferrari or maybe the Bentley. I get a nice fee from Spurs, maybe £500k to sign on and then get a nice £180k a week. Spurs get to pay maybe £10M, if that, saving them £25M. Barkley warms the bench for 18 months and pleads to come home. Spurs sell us the player for £25M.

It's not about football; it's about the money while us mug punters get screwed at shite facilities, paying £50 for an obstructed view on a plank of a seat, £50 to park my car and £5 for a beer or two. Then we are herded like sheep by the police and a police dog bites my thigh while the copper wants to arrest me.

The examination approached the part of the anatomy between the ears

That's when everything went wrong

Mark Riding: Did Barkley steal your girlfriend, or laugh at your willy?

Again spot on

At least Coutinho wants to follow his dreams

C**t Barkeley has no redeeming features. Like Moyes if you decide to shit on us you reap what you sow.

Cant make his mind up so dithers.

On the other hand I can see Levy's greedy hands all over this telling his agent he will get a nice signing on fee in January when Spurs offer 2/3 of FA.

He has proved he has no love for this club, but when given the chance to leave the city he shits himself.

As usual on TW when anyone criticises the golden child, Koeman and now Mosheri get the blame. So all you devotees get used to it Ross maybe finished at this club.

I hope his stay at the club is as Mat Muzi @77 suggests.

Tell me what makes more sense from the player's perspective...

Sign up with someone now, at the last minute with limited options and you won't play for them until January due to injury.

Or see what other options present in January when you're fit and ready to go and able to command a greater signing on fee due to a reduced transfer value.

Without bringing my blue specs into it, I'd wait. It's not like he's risking not having a job to go to next July. He'll go somewhere and his earning potential is increasing with every month that he approaches the end of his current contract.

Should he do the right thing by Everton? Well we don't really know how Everton has treated him as he won't say anything. He might be perfectly entitled to want to stick one up Mosh, BK and Ron.

Why he didn't come to that conclusion before personal terms etc is a bit strange however.

Also the differences in the release from Mosh v Barkley camp pretty much nails on he won't play for us again in my view.

Ross may be in need of some form of counselling. The Club and supporters were rightfully fully supportive of Lennon. Mental illness is not a clear-cut scenario. Ross' situation, whatever its source is stressing everyone. Perhaps he just feels completely overwhelmed by all that's going on and his way of dealing with it has been withdrawal, and all this being carried out in the public eye? Add to that the apalling abuse from the Sun and what do you get?

Behind the scenes, plots and scenarios, I would like to think he will get straightened out and will go on to recover himself and his position within the Club he loves. . . . . . . .

Alternatively, he may be a conniving little shit! For now we simply don't know, and being judgmental won't help. Patience may be rewarded.

"Only one winner in this argument" - Yep we know who that is

"if he doesn't sign he goes" - Aha

"Not an Evertonian" - but still here

"Koeman showing who's boss" - Embarrassingly true

"He's got to get out of the city" - Really ?

"He'll end up at Newcastle" - No he wont

"He's thick" - yeah but he's clearly a bit sharper than Koeman.

I said weeks ago that my hope is that Barks stays, Koeman eventual gets the sack and Barks signs again - Phase 1 complete.
Lets add a new verse to the Barkley song just for the manager and those who claim he is not the full shilling.

"So if you're feeling sick, outwitted by someone thick"

"Ross Barkleys still here coz he's a blue"

They'e showing a compilation of great goals. It wasn't his screamer against City at Home. it wasn't the brilliant goal away to City. nor the one where he does the unthinkable and entertains the faithful by celebrating before he scores.

It was the one where he beats about 5 men at St James Park before slotting home . .Genius

Hapless but harmless, sometimes wayward hero. Boyhood club. Villainous, tyrannical foreign protagonist. Endless guessing at possible behind-the-scenes machinations. A bar fight. Onlookers divided, some almost melting down in emotional outbursts at unproven assumptions... culminating in a completely unforeseen drama at the eleventh hour.

All the elements are there, barring a bit of illicit screwing.

Life, art, bread, circuses. It couldn't be... could it?

I don't buy he's still here because he's a blue though. He would sign that contract if such was the case, despite his relationship with the manager. He's still here as Spurs didn't bid is a more likely scenario.

I personally think he's playing the "look after number 1 card" bloody well. Of course, he's entitled to do just that and don't blame him one bit. Its what numerous players have done before and will no doubt do in the future.

Its the boards own fault.

I've actually lost a lot of faith in Mosh over this and the debacle of yesterday. Releasing a statement saying what he said about Barkley (which now seems like bull) then stating we have a strong squad and he's happy with it. Not what Mr Koeman was saying a few days ago. And not what most fans can see either.

And yes that goal versus Newcastle. Genius although some would say it was only against Newcastle not any of the Top 6

:)

He will never get the chance to achieve anything at Everton now that's for sure.

I don't dislike the lad but he's mid-table at best. His England career, if he ever had one, is in tatters and he's got no one to blame other than himself. Wasted talent.

Billy Kenny, anyone?

I'm still torn as to whether last nights shenanigans was Barkley just not being able to leave Everton when push came to shove, or whether he was showing the dithering, poor decision-making he often shows on the pitch.

One thing I am sure about, if he was trying to 'shaft' Everton, he wouldn't have gone down there, negotiated a deal and done half a medical before changing his mind.

And after this, he's finished here, not welcome. Can't see him playing again, but if he does, he'll be rightly booed. Has cost the club millions. Prick.

Sell Stones, buy a few average players in a panic (we've learnt our lesson and this won't happen again).

Sell Lukaku (our most effective striker in decades) and replace him with whom? We used his money to good effect but he wasn't replaced.

Try and sell Ross and? Was he to be replaced? What were they going to do with the money? To a lesser degree the same goes for Niasse, Moshiri was eyeing up £40m plus and he was going to do what exactly? Did he have a pkayer waiting in a London, Paris, Madrid or Milan hotel waiting to sign a contract?

The Moshiri-BK partnership is just more of the same old bullshit we've had for years. Ineptitude, laziness and lies. And, what's happened to the stadium? Not a peep from our saviour or was the Ross money destined towards that?

Along come Chelsea, prepared to pay a lot more money for the kid, who has probably been in shock because this wasn't part of the plan. Talks to Chelsea, because he's now in a bit of limbo, then his agent must have been sent a message off someone from Spurs, saying they still want him?

Listening to Wenger, he says players are going to start negotiating their own transfer fees, aswell as contracts, sometime soon in the very near future? They nearly hold all the aces now, so if this happens, then football as a real team sport is finished. Auto's 115, last paragraph sums it up best!

Only problem was no Spuds counter offer, he looks a c**t and we are mugged off for our fee and will have to go to tribunal if he moves before he is 24!!!

When is the spoilt bastards birthday anyway!!!

Maybe a load of speculation, but it isn't impractical & could possibly explain what happened

If Koeman and Walsh and the Board had a coherent transfer policy would they have bought Klaassen, Sigurdsson and Rooney, for more or less the same position at a combined cost of way over 㿷 million. Keane and Pickford look excellent buys, Vlaso and Sandro could be good prospects, but three number tens?

Barkley, like most professional footballers, is looking after No.1 and does not give 2 shits about anyone or anything else. He is no more 'one of us' than Nick Barmby or Abel Xavier!

You might be right, and if you think Barkley, has outwitted the manager, then what about the club that have nurtured him since he was a child?

Footballers are human, and human's are a very selfish breed., so he's done nothing wrong by looking after himself first, but this dignified silence is extremely laughable for a scouser who is as long in the tooth as you though mate.

The bigger picture is so much more important, and whilst everyone argues about the pro's and cons of Barkley, something is clearly not right behind the scenes, if Everton could not, or maybe even would not, sign another striker, that they so desperately needed.

If you want to talk about who has cost us £35m, then it is Levy. Barkley appears to have been tapped up by Spurs, they have turned his head and they stopped the Chelsea transfer. Why is no one talking about reporting Spurs for illegal approaches?

Levy is an absolute gobshite, and we should refuse to ever do business with Spurs again. If they think they can get Barkley for £10-£20m in January, why not tell them we will never sell him to them.

Meantime, I will cling, naively, to the dream that Barkley works his way back into the first team, playing with Rooney, and signs a new contract and stays.

The Guardian says we refused to enter into negotiations with Levy yesterday. Who can blame the club, the last thing you want on transfer deadline day is hours of dicking about and playing silly beggars with a man renowned for taking immense pride in being difficult.

Call Ross all you like but the tossers who run our club should be prosecuted for gross negligence. As per usual they take transfers to the wire, where they generally fail, don't have a Plan B when Plan A fails (as it usually does), can't get rid of players who are failing or beyond useless e.g. VDM, Niasse to name two.

The manager begged, pleaded and grovelled for three (03) players 1) A left sided centre back, 2) A winger (mission accomplished- hallelujah!) and 3) A forward to at least try and get half the goals Lukaku would score. Well he got a 19 year old Croatian who might come good but the failure to even partially replace Lukaku might well come back and bite us.

So, fellow Evertonians, don't blame Ross or Niasse for their failure to be sold )to finance some imaginary saviour) blame the incompetent fools who continue to run the club. They are the only ones to blame.

One final question to Moshiri; What happened to the sky millions (£150m?) as our net spend was very low after the Lukaku money. So, where's the money Mosh? I won't even mention the stadium.

I can fully understand that we wanted Giroud and tried so hard to get him. I can understand that we persuaded Arsenal to sell, got the player to agree in principle and then for him or his wife to ultimately change their mind and decline the transfer. But all of this happened 3 weeks ago. I cannot believe that in the three weeks we could not have identified someone who could do a job, even as back-up to Calvert-Lewin, or to be a plan b off the bench if things aren't working out.

The fact that Koeman went to Portugal for deadline day, and spent it on the golf course tells you everything. He knew Vlasic was sorted. He believed we would just be selling Ross and Niasse, and so there was no need for him to be here.

This is what we should be furious about, not that Barkley said no to joining Chelsea at the last minute.

So why Spurs? maybe he thinks Pochettino is a manager who will believe in him, who will put an arm round him and catapult him to fulfil his potential. Maybe he believes that Spurs have a good core of young players, mostly English, and he wants to be part of that?

I would certainly prefer Spurs to Chelsea, but I would never want to be paid in Russian blood money. I doubt that Ross even knows where or how Roman made his money, or that he is using Chelsea to Launder that money.

The player wanted to go to Spurs. They encouraged that thought, without doing anything concrete.

Chelsea stepped in, with an offer EFC could not refuse, i.e. £30m plus add-ons.

He goes down to London, a bit dazed. During the medical, Spurs e-mail an offer of £20m plus add-ons to EFC and copy his agent in. Agent tells player. EFC refuse Spurs offer, on the entirely reasonable ground, that someone else has offered a lot more.

Spurs say [to agent] they will offer the same £20m in January, and point out that he's injured till then anyway. Player pulls out.

So, he hasn't had a sudden attack of loyalty. He's going to Spurs for £20m in January, and once again, Mr. Levy gets what he wants.

Malcolm #144 - very plausible and though it sounds foolish if the club had refused to talk to Spurs it may be because Levy was talking 㾻m knowing Ross has his heart set on going there and the club have decided they will either wait for a better offer or he may as well go for free in a year. If that is what happens they can now always point the finger at Ross for costing us 㿏m.

Brian #89 - I agree also with your point about bravery.

At the end of the day Ross is a human being who doesn't appear to be happy and is trying to find a solution to that, which isn't always easy. It's all well and good agreeing things in principle and on paper but if he didn't feel it was right last night when sat in the bowels of Stamford Bridge (or wherever) so he pressed 'eject' then I won't criticise him, he will most likely have done the right thing for himself in the long run.

Ten years ago I was looking for a change of job and nothing that was put in front of me was in the slightest bit appealing. I waited and bided my time and after about a year the job I was waiting for, which I knew was there somewhere, came out of the blue. I went for it 100% and fortunately got it. Some of my mates thought I was crackers when I made the move and ten years on I am still with the firm and the decision is one of the best I ever made. I think Ross is in a similar position. Let him get on with his life and we can concentrate on ours.

The whole Moshiri - White relationship is very suspicious. Owners usually leak news to trusted journos off the record but this guy goes on the most watched sports show in the land to explain another transfer fuck up live!!

I've not only lost any respect I had for him but also trust. In my opinion he's just a richer version of King Billy.

I really like DCL but you can't put the pressure of leading the line on his shoulders when we are playing 3 games per week. As others has said, gross negligence.

Apart from not getting a striker most other targets were got, and although we are all upset we didnt get the striker can you imagine how the Chelsea and Arsenal fans are feeling this morning.
I cant quite believe what is happening to Chelsea, Konte sends Costa a text binning him thinking he was getting Lukaku but he prefers Man Utd. Then they agree a fee for the OX but he signs for Liverpool, then they agree a fee with Swansea for Llorente and he goes to Spurs. Then yesterday they agree a fee and personal terms with Barkley who goes to Cobham only to change his mind. Lets not forget these are the reigning champions bizarre.

So compared to Chelsea and Arsenal we havent done too bad, I posted yesterday morning that even if Chelsea reached an agreement with Everton over Barkley that Levy would persuade him to sit tight and sign for them in Jan, which is what will happen. Levy is a smart operator why sign a player and pay his wages for a couple of months before he can play for you.

Yet some are saying they are happy. unbelievable.
He makes terrible decisions on the pitch and is lazy in defense. He gets called out and told to pull his socks up and he throws his toys.

The defense, GK and midfield are stronger this year than last, and we have more depth. The lack of a striker is frustrating, but in reality last year we had Lukaku and no other option if he was injured. Now we have Rooney, Sandro and DCL.
Transfers are done. Time to get behind the team and move on.

He should be banished; yes, pay his wages and make sure he stays at the club until the last 59 seconds of his contract and make sure he never wears the Everton blue again; they should make a special yellow shirt for him.

I am so goddamn pissed – he made all this crap about wanting more money, more chances of playing Champions League. He was given it but he decided he would shaft the club instead. How can anybody support this arsehole?

Just an assumption on my part. It seems very strange that Ross pulled out of this at the 11th hour when everything was in place. Something seems to have gone on...

I don't agree that Ross is way back in the pecking order for the number 10 position. Sigurdsson with Barkley and Rooney, in front of one holding midfielder, love it. COYBB

"Everton had refused to deal with Tottenham on the final day of the transfer window. But Barkley was uncomfortable with having his future dictated by the Toffees and informed Chelsea that he wants to wait until January to make a decision on his next move.
Chelsea will try for Barkley again in the New Year and it remains to be seen whether or not Everton will change their stance and listen to a bid from Tottenham in the next transfer window."

To me this looks like again a case of the club bullying Ross into an outcome and him correctly not being happy about it.

I've read £20m, but that is not necessarily reliable, but sounds plausible as a Levy approach.

So put it simply... here's a 2 yr contract with a £25m release clause. Sign it by October or spend the whole year (World Cup year) training alone. Give Niasse his fucking locker! :)
See how much anyone wants you when you haven't even trained competitively for a year! Go fuck your self!

The more I watched and listened , the more I am convinced it was Kenwright talking with his hand over the phone putting on his best Herr flick impersonation , the picture above jovial Jim , of a grinning "Mr Farhad " could easily be billy liar again with plenty of Botox, filler and greasepaint on. Begs the question: Does he really exist?

Don't miss tonight's conference call with Jim the Jock featuring Moshiri singing "We haff a diamond call Voss Barky."

Ross stripped down at the medical and someone laughed at the size of his cock.

or

He doesn't want to be too far away from his mummy and got scared of big ol London.

Seriously though, there will be many claims and counter-claims in the next few weeks and I don't think any of us has a clue. Therefore I choose to believe one of the above statements.

One thing is for sure: If my boss treated me like Barkley has been treated then I would find a way to leave on my terms, not theirs.

Ross will do what he thinks is best for Ross. We must move on and do what's best for us.

I thought a year or two ago that he should have left for his own good. He's been played out of position, bulked up to fuck and criticised by his own supporters and, in the last year, his manager. Whatever guidance and development the club has given him hasn't brought the best out of his undoubted talent.

Before people have a crack, yes of course he's responsible for his own development too. Well here he is, making decisions about how to get the best out of his career.

Right or wrong, there'll be something to judge. And I can't wait to hear the truth about what really went on between him and the club. .

Ross isn't the first player to turn down Chelsea this summer. Maybe players have heard things from their Chelsea mates, who knows? But putting words, or thoughts, into his mouth is just ridiculous.

It sounds like the lad had his heart set on moving to Spurs and has decided to wait until January. Yes, we will lose money but it's his life, career, decision etc... and no one can force him into a move he doesn't want.

He's injured till xmas so from the buying clubs perspective, why pay 30m odd now when he won't be fully fit till Jan. By which point he'll be in the last 6 months of his contract and we can sign him for about 5m! (Whilst Barkley gets a massive chunk of the fee saved.)

TBH it makes sense from the players perspective when you look at it that way. He can't play for 3 months anyway.

Could have been tapped up by Spurs or could also be Chelsea telling him to delay to Jan. After examining him at the medical they would have confirmed he can't play till Dec, so why pay 30m now when they can re bid 5-10m in Jan?

From what is doing the rounds is Spurs contacted Ross or his agent and informed them they want him and will sign the player in January and that is when Ross decided against signing for Chelsea, in doing so, Everton are the losers, not only in a much less fee, but also paying his wages until January as well.

Some say he stands a better chance with Spurs in January with the World Cup coming up, well personally and it is my only view is we write off the shitty transfer fee we will get, keep hold of the player until his contract runs out in the Summer ensuring he trains on his own, is omitted from the first team and u23 squad, if you can do it to Niasse Ron, put your foot down and do it on Everton's terms until that contract ends.

He might get his dream move, but he will not get his World Cup wish, well and truly shafted Everton and its supporters.

What sticks in the craw is Levy playing us like a trout on a hook. However some would say it's being smart, and we put ourselves in a position of weakness in the first place.

He'll be off to Spurs and so be it. Let's see how that works out.

He will have effectively done EFC out of £20 odd million. That is no good for us. We shouldn't be ok with that.

If he ends up at Spurs, that's different. Fair play to him. That is what he wanted, obviously.

If he ends up signing a new contract with US, again, fair play to him. That is what the change of heart would have been about.

Time will tell. But, a warning to Ross, Evertonian's will NEVER forget or forgive that sort of thing.
Leaving for a big fee is one thing, leaving for next to nothing is something totally different!

The bottom line in my opinion, is Ross wants to play for Everton and no one else and thought that the club would change their minds and offer him more money.
They have not and he's stuck in no mans land.

I'd prefer for Koeman to go instead given the choice, because he's making a right pigs ear of managing us, any player with any flair he wants gone.
I'll wager our goals for, will be well down on the previous 5 seasons, I hope I'm wrong but its looking very likely to happen!

Apparently there was no medical but Mosh suggests personal terms were agreed, why?

If he didn't want to consider going to Chelsea, why agree terms? why let it get that far?

I appreciate that he didn't want to be forced into moving, but why let it get to the stage of a medical anyway?

Also – "I believe he's as good as we have produced at Goodison since Harvey and Royle fifty years ago and if he'd been sympathetically managed could have been the fulcrum of the team."

I couldn't facepalm myself hard enough .Fucking "sympathetically managed"? are you fucking kidding me? He's a professional footballer, get on and do your fucking job lad!!

It seems to me that all is not well with Mr Barkley, and while I don't have anything solid to back this up, it's pretty obvious he's not happy, not fit, not enjoying life at Everton/in Liverpool and for whatever reason/reasons things are simply not going well for the kid.

We'll probably never know the truth, nor will do we have any right to know the ins & outs of another human beings personal life. I still think he'll leave in January when he's fit, but would love to be proved wrong.

They are somebody else's fault.
Don't you dare steal Koemans thunder.

Bottom line, who give a fuck what Matt Law thinks about Everton, the man is a Chelsea fanatic who works for Telegraph.

Also, why are you stating that "Everton are bullying Ross into a transfer"? I mean the boy was going to go for a bigger salary, a good signing on fee and probably a fuckoff fee from Everton as well. Where is the "bullying"? Ross didn't want all the probable glory of going to Chelsea as it's a known by almost everyone that he's waiting for Levy to give him the nod.

Everton are a business, we have assets which Ross is a one of, so if another business wants that asset they will have to pay for it. That's how it worked for Lukaku going to United and Siggy coming to us from Swansea. I think its quite sad that you think Everton should allow Barkley, who is obviously working in tandem with Levy, to dictate when and what price this transfer happens.

For me this whole Barkley saga totally fucking stinks and now we have sit back and watch as Levy will come in and legally strip this great club of one their own. Bullying you say? Well, enjoy watching it.

The lad hasnt got anything between his ears and is apparently a real "mummy's" boy.

Those praising his sublime skills and the fact he is one of us need to remember the last decent game he had and he has had plenty of opportunity to play well.

For the amount of money these guys are paid and looked after we might expect a degree of cooperation and appreciation.

There he is picking up his 75 grand a week while having the finest medical treatment contributing nothing but a depreciating value and people still have sympathy for him.

The people that deserve sympathy are scattered all over hostels in Texas desperately trying to find out if their family or pets are ok.

This Ross Barkley debacle got me thinking.

Not so long ago, I had an exchange of communication with Patrick Collins, the now retired sports writer for one of the Sunday papers. The subject was ownership of a football club and the reason for the exchange was the then owner of Hull City FC who wanted to change the name to Hull Tigers.

My argument was the club belonged to the fans and the owners were privileged custodians. If the fans didn't want a name change then the owner should accept the voice of the majority.

Patrick Collins's point of view was, as the owner, he had every right to change the name. He had put so much money into the club he had bought the right to do so.

Obviously Patrick Collins had a reasonable argument but my case for the fans brings me to the point of this piece.

Who does the club really belong to? Does our beloved Everton Football Club belong to Moshiri; Kenwright et al or are they only temporary custodians looking after the club on behalf of the fans? The fans are the club and owners are in a very privileged position to represent EFC for example and make the best fist of making it a success - on behalf of the fans. If the supporters don't turn up, the club fails to exist.

So given my side of the argument is accepted, how much information should a club provide to its fans in this time of social media information is key.

I think people on both sides of the argument would accept certain things need to be kept in-house but reading the recent thread with regards to Ross Barkley's about turn on signing for Chelsea surely the club should be making a truthful statement about this remarkable turn of events. Without such a statement the resultant thread caused a tirade of abusive comments about the player (not everybody of course) without even knowing the real truth because the club saw fit to say nothing official (at least at the point I am writing this short article).

In my opinion, the owners are custodians on behalf of the fans and accurate information at the appropriate time is all the fans require of them (apart from spending zillions on players, of course).

We as fans therefore have a right to information. The club belongs to them and they have a right to know in such cases as the Ross Barkley debacle what is the true state of affairs. Whilst they are at it, can they also explain on the manager's behalf why he sought to purchase so many midfield players? He will be forced to put square pegs into round holes just to get them all a game.

For the record, I wish the club would come out and tell us Ross Barkley couldn't leave the club and has decided to sign a new contract.

The crowd has been constantly on his back. Every misplaced pass greeted with derision again while others doing similar get little attention. Not once has he opened his mouth during this saga. Not once has he slagged of the club.

Take Rom and Ron. Can people remember Koeman's comments about Lukaku not fulfiling his potential if he stayed at Everton? Cheers Ron.

Barkley is dead right if he holds out for more money. Why should he give a fuck about the club he loves when both manager and fans have nothing positive to say. Comments on here about him been a "mummy's boy" and nothing between his years. I don't blame him one bit for leaving. No 23-year-old, despite what they earn, should be subjected to that abuse. Funny how Niasse and Mirallas seem to be in similar boat.

No wonder Rooney was drinking last night watching our beloved owner make a fool of himself on TV. Wake up, Evertonians, the real clowns are at the top. As for Koeman, hope you enjoyed the golf.

My deepest hope is that they all grow up and start dealing with each other like adults and that the end result is that Ross stays and blossoms under the new set up.

The hard-line approach should've happened last summer with contract negotiations which would have ensured the club were never in this situation .

Usually there will be some form of confidentiality clause to stop details being divulged, that parties would either have entered into when starting negotiations or may be covered in his previous contract.

The details of the contract are key. Ross might have been offered a relatively low wage with significant bonus'. I believe he is on £60k a week right now, so perhaps the new contract was for £50k a week, and then a bonus of £60k each game he starts. Everton can report that as a lucrative deal. Ross could get assurances off Koeman that he will be starting games, but then Koeman says actually Ross, you'll be mainly a sub. Suddenly the lucrative contract is no pay rise at all. There is lots of hidden payments in contracts these days, for example image rights, media commitments, club commitments, as well as all the usual payments for goals, appearances (including as sub), wins, draws, etc.

Koeman may have told Everton he does not like Barkley, he does not want Barkley and that they have to sell him. Everton could have said that he is too much of a fan favourite and the only way to sell him is to offer him a contract that he will reject. Then they can get fans to agree to his leaving, or he leaves without the club having to answer serious questions.

Of course, all of this is supposition and conjecture, but so is all of the above. None of us know what Barkley was offered, what the terms were and what assurances he got. The contract may have been designed to be rejected and so to force Barkley out. None of us know the full story.

The facts are simply, he turned down a contract after criticism from Koeman and being dropped from the side twice, and that Koeman has said that he wants to leave for a "new challenege". And now, it is known that he has turned down a move to Chelsea, where it is reasonable to assume he would have got a substantial payrise and they have even said he would have been more or less guaranteed games.

Good luck with that one, Martin.

Look at it this way, Koeman in publicly ultimatums has backed Barkley into a corner on purpose. In doing so he has damaged the players reputation and the clubs expected value on transfer. He has done the same with Niasse and with Mirallas. (almost slandered him and his reputation by smearing his name with a bad attitude) If he kept his mouth shut I believe Barkley would be still playing for the club, Niasse sold for a reasonable value and Mirallas either still playing or moved on at a higher value. No one wants to by a player whose manager has sledged by stating his bad attitude do they?
You may disagree with some of the above but his comments have damaged the value of players and their sale-ability. Not only that but wiped millions of their transfer.
Its incompetent commercial and man management and the club should have interceded to ensure their assets are not damaged.

Barkley has done nothing wrong other than look after Ross Barkley. Koeman has done nothing right other than attempt to enhance his ego. The club? Someone should tell Koeman to shut up and not deal with commercially sensitive discussions that could affect the clubs assets. As it is we now have three players still on our books for the foreseeable future, , Barkley, Mirallas and Niasse all unhappy with the way they have been treated and commercially because of our managers utterances, their value in the transfer market has been diminished. Management at the club nothing changes.

I don't think there is any "desperation to be right" if you were right you were right, no need for desperation.

Those who shouted down observations that Koeman had painted himself into a corner, are embarrassed. It must be difficult to nail your colours to a take-no-shit mast only to see it crumble under the weight of its own shit.

The suggestion that Barkley has cost this club £35m is an incredibly stupid one. He cost them nothing and in case it has escaped notice he is still here. We may not have the dosh, but we still have a player who in today's market is worth much more.

We simply need a manager who can convince the player that he has plans to move this club forward, one who can persuade him that we will match any other clubs ambitions and that he will figure very much in his plans to ensure that ambition comes to fruition. Pay him what he was being offered elsewhere and he will stay.

Unfortunately, we have a dreary dour miserable manager whose teams mirror his personality. One who is getting used to his better players deserting him. From the outset, he played this particular hand with his cards facing the wrong way. The stupidity of telling the world that the players must go simply invited low balls such as the one Chelsea tried.

Those who nailed their colours to Koeman's mast will either need to get used to being wrong or they will be forced to smell the coffee. The guy is simply out of his depth. His buffoonery laid bare.

Their claims that Barkley will be vilified simply demonstrate how little they know about this club. Ross is loved by many and the old lady will shake to the tune of "We've got a diamond" the minute our boys scores another worldy. The bitter and the vindictive will be left to Nash their teeth in private.

Barkley isn't the first scouser to lead Chelsea up the garden path and pull out at the eleventh hour, The last guy received far worse abuse, even death threats... now they call him legend.

Here's one Evertonian who is delighted that we have not seen the back of Barkley in a blue shirt. While he is still here, there is still hope that the clown who created this mess will be replaced by somebody who can sell our boys a dream they can all buy into. That, as far as I'm concerned, calls for celebration.

Koeman Out!

No doubt he is short between the ears, badly advised and wanted a move to Spurs, but as of this morning an injured Ross Barkley is going nowhere, injured and can't step out his own house without a body guard.

So badly advised he has actually managed to piss everyone off except maybe Levy and its actually hard to feel sorry for him...

When you say you're delighted not to have seen the last of Ross in a blue shirt, do you mean as in playing for the first team?

I have rarely felt as low as a supporter as I do today. I see a poor manager who has never truly absorbed the club's ethos and I am afraid I also see a controlling structure at the club which looks confused and incoherent – exemplified by Farhad Moshiri's latest strange appearance for Sky.

I pray that my gloom is misplaced.

And Koeman's one and only tactic so far is – Difficult game, play an extra central defender.

Incompetent, thick and pig-headed. Get rid!

Agree with most of what Christine said, because the minute Koeman, said Barkley, will either sign or be sold, has obviously cost Everton, millions of pounds?

But why wouldn't Everton, deal with Spurs, who had all summer to come and try to sign Barkley? Probably because they knew what Tottenham's ploy was, and also probably knew that Barkley, had been told to just sit and wait, especially since he his injured anyway.

Chelsea, came with a bigger bid, and its threw the plan right out of the window, and probably left Ross, thinking that Spurs didn't want him that much after all this time?

Maybe it would have been different if he was fit, but he must have looked at Oxlaide the day before who said he would just play out the remainder of his contract, unless Liverpool, wanted to sign him, which they promptly did?

Was Chamberlin, a little fucker, for being honest, and eventually making Arsenal, loads of money, and Barkley the dignified one for saying nothing?

It obviously depends on which way people want to judge things, but either way it doesn't look like Moshiri, wanted to give Koeman, anymore money to spend and considering we would have broke even, if Barkley and Niasse had left, then maybe he hasn't been that impressed with the manager signing three number ten's?

Whatever is his detractors might say the fact that both Spurs and Chelsea want to take Barkley gives you an indication he is highly rated. I would love him to stay, Barkley I mean. I would love to be wrong about Koeman but I would be amazed if he is in charge at the start of next season.

Whether Koeman is or isn't a good manager, time will tell, but, when a player is coming to his final year and refuses to sign a new contract, what are the club supposed to do. To be honest I think your agenda is clear anytime you can put the boot into Koeman you do.

I actually don't see this wonderful player that you think Barkley is and neither does the present England manager or his two predecessors. Now you will probably say you don't rate them or their opinions, but why would they leave out such a talented player.

I have no idea why he didn't sign for Chelsea but Everton agreed the fee and he and his agent agreed personal terms before travelling down to Chelsea. But maybe he is indecisive off the pitch as he is on it.

Finally, to put this into perspective, when I heard Catterick was selling Bobby Collins to Leeds and Alan Ball to Arsenal they were a great loss to our club. Selling Ross isn't in the same stratosphere as losing Collins and Ball who were great players.

Even if he had refused all offers/contracts from day 1 he would still be getting paid by Everton so outcome would be the same from his POV.

I thought that Christmas would be the time to reflect. The Chelsea game, which for me was a turning point (fear, defeatism, negativity), suggests to me that by the end of October we will know. I just want a sign that things are getting better.

As far as Ross not signing his new contract is concerned, what if its a crap contract is he still expected to sign it regardless?

You said it as well?
Still a stupid statement.

Please remember that your comments on Barkley are dictated by your hatred for Koeman

They must be, and have nodded off!

Would you post your copy of the contract offer please, Josh, so that we can decide using the same information you have?

Think back to the days we had Carlo Gnash in goal.

Brian - no way. Isn't that sad? At one time, you couldn't have dragged me away from it.

These lads need more chances for us, I'm sick of seeing the likes of Lennon and Mirallas wasting everyone's time. They should have been cut loose.

That said, Koeman should never have humiliated him publicly the way he did over his form.

Lookman will be a major asset. I'd be looking to make a number 10 of him.

Thanks for the link.

Never thought I'd ever do this but I'm having a few days off ToffeeWeb, twitter, googling Everton!!

Beat Spurs next week please!! Cheer us all up

It's not often you are right but I'm sorry you are wrong again. Alan Ball still had years left in him when he was sold to Arsenal, he won a World Cup medal when he was 21. I am one of many still waiting for Ross to realise his potential, he's 24 next month.

Harry Catterick thought Bobby Collins had seen his best days, was getting a great deal off Leeds, turned out he (Catterick) was wrong.

Ball and Collins were ultra professional footballers with outstanding football skills, leaders who made other players play, could tackle and fight, both hated to lose, would give their all for 90 minutes. Do these two players in any shape or form remind you of Ross Barkley?

I still don't know if Koeman can make Everton become a very good team, and I don't know if Ross is ever going to realise his potential. I've been waiting nearly six years now, but I would be very surprised if he did. I don't know anything about the ins and outs of this transfer but I do not think Ross is the little boy lost that some fans are making him out to be.

We might learn more about Ross in the future, time will tell.

I was born during the Latchford era so I never saw Alan Ball but my impression of him RIP is that he was a narky little fighter with drive and skill.

Barkley has drive and skill and you might say is more mercurial than Ball but he doesn't have that will to win or the fight.

The only players since the 80s who I've seen who could be compared for such attributes are Rooney first time round and Cahill.

Oh to have those three up front now!

I thought I was always clear about this. My "agenda" isn't hidden or disguised. I want Koeman gone.

I think you have made up an argument you think you have the answer to rather than one I put forward. Barkley is no Alan Ball, I never said he was. I said the other night that he would not get into any of our title winning teams.

The guy is inconsistent, often poor, but he is one of the few players to wear a blue shirt over the past decade who is capable of getting you out of your seat.

These are dark times for old school like me. Lovers of the beautiful game. Yeah, I like to win, of course I do, but if you cant challenge for honours, winning ceases to be the be all and end all. even less so when there is no real danger of being relegated.

We're the Limbo club, have been for some time. I can accept that. Through no fault of anybody currently employed by the club, we missed the starting gun when sky altered footballs greatest race and we don't have the necessary financial backing to make up the lost ground.

What I cannot accept is the way we play. There is no reason/excuse I can give any credence to. Its completely and utterly unfor-fuckin-giveable. A disgrace to the legacy left by people like Ball, Kendall and Harvey, Collins, Catterick, Young, Vernon, Sheedy...

NSNO is a noble motto, but not one we can afford to adhere to these days.

"The peoples club" was fun for a few days when it was annoying the fuck out of Kopites, but it wasn't long before the joke was on us.

Everton FC is more than a football club. Its an institution. One of the oldest and (for me at least) definitely the finest in the world. We've played more top flight football than all of them. NOBODY compares. We were kings! That statement may have been mocked on here by those who do not understand, but as the saying goes... They don't matter.

My heart used to burst when people referred to us as the School of Science. For anybody not old enough for that to register, we were football's Sultans of Swing. We didn't always win honours, but nobody strutted their stuff like we did.

What the fuck happened to that philosophy? Why do we have so many people accepting, embracing and excusing zombie football if the best we can hope for is a 7/8th placed finish?

Ross Barkley is more than an inconsistent modern day player. He may not be top notch, but represents our links to our SoS past. Yes he has flaws in his game, but give me a player with imagination trying to create, over one of Koeman's wannabe destroyers all day long.

The self-proclaimed "positives" on here need to have a word with themselves. This game is meant to be enjoyed. There is a beauty and a joy to it.

When Ross Barkley left half the Newcastle team sitting on their arses, he was creating a memory. A memory that will live a sight longer than a thousand tackles from Morgan Schneiderlin or Idrissa Gueye. Longer than a million hoofs from Jagielka or Williams.

If you don't have a place in your heart for Ross Barkley, You may as well start collecting stamps or trainspotting. This footy lark clearly isn't for you

Seeing Barkley mentioned in the same sentence as Bobby Collins and Alan Ball, never mind compared to them, almost made me spill my tea! It is truly modern game, when achieved nothing footballers like Ross are talked about in the same breath as great players like Bobby and Bally. Barkley did cost us –35 million because that is the offer that has on the table, subject to medical, from Chelsea. I am convinced he has been told by Spurs to sit tight until January, but either way the decision not to join the champions speaks volumes about how he sees himself (and we should see him) as a player.

Barkley knows that he does not have the ability to break into the Chelsea team and that he might play more for Spurs. Now we are stuck paying for his recuperation and feeding his greedy self-interest until January or even July. I can just about stomach that until he gets mentioned alongside a Goodison great like Alan Ball.

And Darren Hind, I read your posts as they offer a different perspective and this site is all about stimulating debates about the thing we all love – Everton FC. But you are becoming the pub bore of ToffeeWeb who gets nasty after three pints – show more respect to fellow blues who don't agree with you or change your local.

Unfortunately Ross rarely turned in the performances we hoped for. Let's face it we wanted our own home grown superstar who would be instrumental in winning us games.
It seems his legacy will be posts on here of how great we perceived him to be.

That said I am with Darren regarding performances and I just want to see them at least try to be offensive.
Sadly Ross is not the answer.

Koeman has damaged Everton financially – in these days of crazy transfer prices, assuming that he wanted to get rid (and the club supported him) of Niasse, Barkley and Mirallas, the least he could have done was not to slate them. That in itself is a sackable offence.

Hopefully, he can motivate the rest of the group and get them to play out of their skins and help him save his skin. We were the 4th highest spenders in the league. With Arsenal in turmoil, and Chelsea also wobbling (not on the field so far though), the least Moshiri should expect from Koeman is a 6th place finish and a decent Cup run in at least one of FA Cup, Premier League or Europa League (semi-final at least). Anything less and it would be best to part ways next May.

Martinez was sacked for finishing 11th and reaching the semi-finals of both the FA and League Cups (losing both to the eventual winners).

It's like the arguments about who is the best player Messi or Pele, all of the Messi advocates never saw the Black Diamond play, and fail to realize that Peli played on what can only be described as a farmers field compared to the snooker table surfaces of today.

I forgot Pele was also getting the fucking shit kicked out of him at the same time. Look at Messi sideways and it's a foul. Forget Ball & Collins – what about Tony Kay, Jimmy Gabrial, Johnny Morrisey, Roy Vernon, the list goes on of players who actually realized their potential.

Ross is still getting away with mediocrity under the guise of 'potential'.

I tell you what: Jagielka's last-minute 'hoof' at Anfield a few years ago will live a hell of a lot longer in my memory and gave me more joy than anything that Barkley has ever or will now ever do for Everton.

By persisting with the ridiculous strawman argument, You expose the feebleness of your argument.

The only people who are comparing Barkley to all time greats are you and Brian Harrison... wonder why that is?

You have no clue what went on at Chelsea and you are making wild assumptions about what you want to believe happened at Spurs.

You may want to read your post again. You then go on to claim Barkley doesn't believe he is good enough... even though the club was prepared to pay a fortune for him.

Your conclusions are not even based on things that have happened. They are simply wild unsubstantiated allegation. That isn't expressing an alternative view. It's nonsense which makes no sense at all... which makes you boring before you've even had a bevy.

Simple tip for You and anyone else who cant stand Barkley being mentioned in the same breath as Ball.. . Stop doing it!

It's now a possibility and I don't think Barkley would think twice if he was approached by the dark side next summer.

Talking to fans of other clubs on holiday a few weeks back and I'd say nearly all of them thought we'd made good signings this window. Might turn out to be true...

The reality is Koeman is tactically brain dead. "Square pegs, round holes" I think the phrase is – witness his suicidal team selection on April 1st this year. Disgraceful. He's failed to address issues even the simplest of fans can see. I won't go into it but you know where I'm coming from.

No, sorry – call Darren all you want but the truth is he's 100% right .

So where do these assumptions about Barkley moving to Spurs in January or next summer come from? Is it known that the reason Barkley changed his mind was because Spurs contacted him. If they did so, why didn't Spurs make a formal offer? They could have lost him. I have read many times that Barkley was "tapped up" by Spurs – the club that made no offer. If so, why did he even start the process with Chelsea?

Having written all this down, I feel even more confused!

How about you record his next press conference? Play the recording backwards and let me know what evil message comes out.

I have also got off my seat when he lost the ball after three or four turns backwards and sideways, getting nowhere, then running after the opponent who took the ball off him for 3 or 4 yards, then giving up; he does the latter a lot more than the former and he sickens me with that attitude.

Like Darren, I love beautiful football and Ross can play it now and again. If I was a scout for a top club, I would give Ross the thumbs down to any club I was representing.

As is often the case with your posts, you made me pause for thought. I understand your desire for entertaining football and your belief that, with little chance of making top 4 or getting relegated, why not play expansive, exciting football?

You know the reason, Darren. It's a results business first and foremost, and Koeman will set us up to win at home and be hard to beat away. If this team get their shit together and we stumble upon a formation and lineup that gels, then you may get your entertainment. But, while waiting for that to happen, you'll have to settle for solidity at the back and confused/lacklustre forward play.

I still have faith that we will find the right blend before too long.

A) could stay and sign a new deal. Judging by Moshiri's tone on Sky Sports News, this is not happening.

B) He's agreed a deal with Chelsea, and this is an elaborate way to land a discount or larger signing-on fee whilst injured. Seems unlikely, Chelsea are struggling to get deals over the line, so deliberate sabotage seems unlikely.

C) The lad doesn't know what he wants and needs thinking time. Seems unlikely, he's had plenty of time to think over his future. Footballers think of nothing else.

D) The deal was never quite at that stage. Again unlikely Everton would do this, unlikely but not impossible.

E) He's going to wait till the end of his deal and look at best offers on the table. A mega club might surprise and take him for nothing, and then pump him on. I think this is what is happening. He doesn't need to do anything yet.

F) He's going to Spurs. A deal behind the scenes has been cooked. Seems plausible. Plenty of noise that he's going to Spurs to join his England chums, and is a ready-made replacement or partner for Alli. Levy loves screwing clubs over, and a discount could solve the wage issue with a decent signing-on fee.

So time will tell. All a bit of a mess with holes in the team, and three unwanted players in Mirallas, Niasse and Barkley falling in worth when the cash is needed elsewhere – 㿞m.

The difference Is, I'd suggest Klopp was right on both fronts. But no-one has a pop at nice Jurgen, do they?

My hunch Is that Klopp is much better at communicating his tactics and plans than Koeman will ever be. I've also been told that he's one absolute tough bugger who will not tolerate any crap from anyone.

Players and managers have always clicked/clashed. The true professionals rise above it or move on. Selectively quoting players doesn't cut any ice with me.

I wonder what Catterick and Kendall would have said about that, never mind Bally or Reid?

All top managers are utterly ruthless – something Ross has to learn... I bet Pochettino is no push-over either.

Get Ross signed up, Moshiri, and then bring in a manager who has the right ethos for Everton.

I saw nearly every game that Ball played for Everton and for me he reached his peak in the 1970 title-winning season. His form dipped badly, as Everton's did, from the start of the following season to when he left.

He never reproduced his best Everton form for Arsenal. He was once an absolute genius and later became just a hard-working midfielder.

I stand by my comment.

“He has one more year on his contract and we work with respectful people. And after his surgery, if he is back for training, he will be part of the first-team sessions.”

May have interpreted it incorrectly at the time wonder if he feels Ross is being respectful..

Truth is. none of us know what Ross wants.

My guess is his first choice is to play for Everton but under a different manager – not going to happen in next 3 months.

Failing that, a better contract offer under Koeman in January.

Third choice: a forced move to another top club.

Sultans of Swing – brilliant... but when you get Harry as your owner then no wonder the cracks set in!

Back to Barkley: no, better still, fuck Barkley. Let the kid get fit, and then we will see what's going to happen!

In Koeman, we didn't bring in a manager to play nice football. I think we brought him in because the Martinez reign was so unsuccessful. We were dour under Moyes but we didn't under-achieve. If anything, in view of the years before and money spent, we over-achieved. After his first year, Martinez under-achieved for two with bottom half finishes. I think in Koeman we knew we were getting a manager who would stabilise us and get European football. I'm hopeful he will get us a cup too.

But I understand the style issue. I would have loved Eddie Howe. I understand that it wasn't perhaps the best time to appoint him, but he has shown an incredible tactical versatility. His side play with attacking positivity and are great to watch.

If Koeman did leave at some point then the would be the replacement I'd want. As I've said before, I think we have a bright future and it will be built upon the youth acquisitions made in the last two years and beyond. Big talents have come in and no-one has been impressive in those acquisitions in the league since Walsh came in. A young attacking manager would be in line with that versatility.

But I would cut Koeman some slack too. It is too early to judge him this season and he did get us Goodison back last season and European football. He deserves time and a little patience to bed in a lot of players. He proved tactically versatile with the Saints, and was the first manager to switch between wing backs and full backs so fluidly. I think he is a progressive manager, in some respects at least, and hopefully we can see that over the course of this season.

Maybe the club, haven't got as much money, as we were lead to believe? Or maybe the owner has sat back and thought about letting Kioeman, show him what he plans to do with the players, he's now got?

I don't believe he had any intention of signing for Chelsea, he's taken it as far as he could with this potential deal and turned around at the last minute and thought "Naa fuck it, I will hang around the club for another few months and screw the club out of receiving a big fee."

Then in January, Everton get very little and Barkley gets an increased salary due to the reduction in fee. I would bet on it that Daniel Levy has had some input in this whole episode, quietly rubbing his hands knowing he'll get a player for next to nothing.

Jim #310, completely agree with that post. Within Moshiri's TV rant I picked up a message to Koeman, 'We've got you several players, get them together and do your job.'

Quite right too!

Many impatient fans are now lambasting Koeman after one full season and 3 games which is totally unfair. Let's at least get to Christmas and see what's transpired.

Barkley's situation is galling and the lad himself may be the problem not Koeman or the club. If he has a problem with Koeman then what's to say he wouldn't have a problem with Conte or Pocchetino?

He has not stepped up when needed and has become a very inconsistent sort even playing as an offensive player. With him having a serious injury at present it's hard to see what the future holds for him but it doesn't appear to be at Goodison. He has a lot of talent and I am sure he will hit the highlight reels more than once but I cannot see him being anything better than he has been so far.

I can assure Darren that every Blue wants to watch Everton take the piss out of teams at Goodison, literally have teams begging for the final whistle. Well, that's not happening any time soon.

It's now obvious to all concerned; whether they pull on the blue jersey, sit in the stands at Goodison or swill whiskey in our board room. Big changes are coming. Will Koeman walk? Fuck knows... but he's a stubborn twat so that's possible. Barkley is definitely gone under the present management so it's either roll on January when he can just fuck off or the board replace Koeman. We can argue our arses off about Koeman and Barkley till the moon turns blue, but right now, this great club has 4 months to play before January and unbelievably we have NO striker. That's right; no Number 9.

We have Spurs and United coming up and cup games in between. For me it's almost a certainty that Calvert-Lewin plays up top against Spurs so my heart goes out to the kid, he will have 38,000 fans cheering him at Goodison and hundreds of thousands tuning in from all around the globe. No pressure there then.

Barkley, I couldn't give a fuck about anymore. For me Koeman is probably wondering what the shit has happened as his position at Everton seems to be going rapidly pear-shaped and I feel losses against Spurs and Man Utd will see him walk. That should resolve a shed load of arguments on TW.

However, the collective concerns regarding Koeman's lack of playing style, and his frustration at not 'getting everything he wanted for Christmas', will all be noted on the performance balance sheet.

I expect to see a stronger approach to performances once we are through the nightmare start. Qualifying for the Europa League group stages was crucial. It has been achieved. A point, nearly three at City was creditable. Chelsea was embarrassing, Shit happens. 3 - 4 points in the Spuds and Manure games would be very positive and we can build on that.

Comparing the perceived lack of ambition to the 60s, 70s and 80s is nuts. The game and the terms of reference surrounding Division 1 in those days have been totally eclipsed by the 'new money' and the Bosman heritage in the Premier league. As Darren said, we missed the premier league bus when it set off and have been playing catch up ever since. Man City's investment, and the time it has taken, all without the need for a new stadium has been far away and above what we can manage. Moshiri is I understand a self-made businessman not a Sheikhdom. Champions League footy in the 3 -4 years still looks possible, if not probable, and that is a massive surge forward in our expectations.

What is disappointing, and I hope it is a short-term thing, is the lack of nous being shown by our manager, from time to time, both on the field and off. I simply cannot get my head around some of his team selections or substitutions, and his public statements surrounding the Mirallas, and Barkley situations, especially from a club notoriously private in their dealings. He is behaving frankly like a real dumb ass from a business perspective. This together with a continuation of the negative footy may be his undoing.

I still think we need to be patient as we have made more strides than we would have done without Moshiri. Clearing the debt, bringing the new stadium into the spotlight, back into Europe, replacing and improving almost all the first team squad, having the best approach to developing youth in the Premier League are all positives.

Strange that Koeman's public pressure to bring in Schneiderlin prompted action from the board, but that his comments about the need for a striker and left sided defender did not produce the goods. Possibly just a proverbial cock-up behind the scenes, but let's wait and see what unfolds between now and Christmas.

Consider this though: Ball was the first player to play 100 games for four top class clubs, including playing nearly 200 games for both Arsenal and Southampton after he left Everton, played for England for five years after he left Everton. At Arsenal he suffered a broken leg and another injury which left him sidelined for many months.

We will just have to stick to our own opinions Martin.

To put it in perspective, in the space of 7 days we've played the Champions, Champions elect (according to many) and a Europa cup tie all away from home with creditable results (even at Chelsea where we were spanked 5-0 last season despite the mighty Lukaku and Barkley playing).

It doesn't take much to see the team is much more organized now and yes its not pretty and some of the selections are questionable but form follows function and the 80s side were not pretty to watch early days.

We need to be patient and give the man a chance to do it his way.

Following his ultimatum, Ross is still here to provide copy for journalists, an absolute fail for the manager's style in my view.

He hasn't got the players he wanted. Boo hoo.

Whilst he might, but his supporters certainly will, use this as a reason for the club's stalled project I see it as a likely further insight to his inept tactical judgement.

Namely with several attacking pieces in his squad, can he 'mastermind' a style to complement that?

Sure we have no proven centre forward but surely he has enough attacking players in the squad to mitigate that? He is after all a world class coach, a tactical genius etc. These are paraphrased views expressed on these pages.

I would suggest that Sigurdsson may end up playing centre-forward, along side or alternately with Calvert-Lewin as the load tells on the youngster?

But would you give the fella money in January for a centre forward? No point if we are mid-table. Time has all but ran out for Koeman unless he changes a habit of a life time.

And for those espousing his defensive nature and comparing him to a Conte or a Mourinho. He is neither nor has players good enough to play that way.

Don't get me wrong I hope he stays but he now needs to be the player he has always promised to be. In a football world where clubs are regularly paying £10m for a teenager, to get ONE bid for Ross with 150 games experience speaks volumes.

He has talent but no application or vision and is very rarely a game changer. That said, again I hope he stays.

He has turned down a new contract with us worth (allegedly) over £100,000 per week. I can't see him going to Spurs if Broadway Danny Rose's comments have any fact in them.

Very odd situation all round and no-one on here knows the real reasons behind this situation.

I think Everton doing badly in that season was due to loss of Ball's amazing form and teams like Arsenal going to 4-4-2 to put an extra man in midfield to counter players like Ball. I saw Bally play at all of his clubs, the best young player I ever saw and at Everton the most talented midfielder at the time in the world. His all-action long and short passing game was superb, and how about the value of over 15 goals a season?

I was sick when we sold him but I think at the time it was not bad business. When I saw him play for Arsenal, he wasn't a bad player but never the magician that he was at his best at Everton in the late 60s.

My Uncle was a Chief Superintendent in Liverpool at the time and there were rumours of lifestyle choices that may have affected his form and caused Everton to do the unthinkable. Catterick thought the world of him too.

Sorry Dave, I have no divine right to be correct but just something that I wouldn't get into an argument about. I'm sure that others have yet more differing opinions.

It was a total abrogation off what we as fans of a great club should stand for. It was a despicable performance by all and a totally unacceptable result because there was at no point any attempt to play football.

Stop coming up with these shite excuses and instead hold this manager to a far higher standard that is befitting of this club and its history.

On topic, it would be great if there could be some rapprochement with Barkley but I fear the die seems firmly cast, which I think is a terrible shame for us.

Ball was one of the best midfielders in the world between 1968-70 but was never the same after the Mexico World Cup. He reinvented himself from being an all-action player to probably the best one-touch player I have seen but his influence on a game reduced as he could no longer dictate a game as he used to.

Back to the present and Ron now has to show that he is a good manager. He has accumulated an unbalanced squad and, for whatever reason, has neglected to replace our top striker. To be honest, there were none out there I would have flung much money at anyway so let's see what he can do. He has spent a fortune regardless of how it found its way into our coffers and he now has to deliver or be seen to be incapable of doing so.

We need a winning team playing entertaining football – not too much to expect given his gross spend?

Yes, forgot about the 1970 WC. It was at that time his form seemed to go. What a player until then, possibly the most underrated ever but not by us who had the pleasure to see him at his best.

Unlike Ross, Bally was the complete player when he was 18. My eyes go damp thinking back and looking at our current crop of superstars.

We were in Mexico City 20 years ago, it was so polluted I had to stop every so often to catch my breath - and that was just walking!

We got his 5 finest years, whilst paying £110,000 to Blackpool and receiving from £220,000 from Arsenal. But we should never have let him go. Even when he was not at his best, he was formidable, and the Ball, Harvey and Kendall trio was stopped prematurely.

The best season was 68-69. Every time my dad and me got home from the match, my mum would ask how we did, and my dad always seemed to say we were great. Every time.

But, I believe Everton handled Ball quite badly in 1971, as they had handled Alex Young quite badly prior to that. Forget about comparing Barkley with Ball. But be reminded that Everton is Everton Football Club Company Ltd, and Ross Barkley is a professional footballer first and an Evertonian second.

I was at school and my uncle had season tickets in the row behind where John Moores sat and I saw every home game for a few years. What I recall above anything else was the feeling going to the match that, regardless of who we were playing, provided Alan was in the team we had a very good chance of winning because he was so consistently brilliant and would drag the rest of the team along with him. It's what made his poor form after the World Cup so noticeable because he rarely if ever had a bad game before then.

There were, as we all know, rumours of financial problems (he makes no secret of that in his book) but he denied that this was the reason for his move. Most likely Catt saw the chance to double his money on a player who was in decline and he didn't see the potential in Bally reinventing himself with one-touch.

I had the absolute honour of meeting him not long before his tragic death and had half an hour with him just chatting about his time at Everton. His love for the club and the fans was very evident and he said how much he relished playing against the hard men at the time and the big clubs.

Very sadly missed and there is not a player around to hold a candle to him.

But not as good as Bally.

Who's the Greatest of them all???