Everton boss Roberto Martinez has told arch rivals Liverpool to forget about signing his 20-year old attacking midfielder Ross Barkley in the summer,
The former Wigan manager laughed off rumours that the Reds are willing to offer a whopping 38 million pounds for the England international, and insisted that Barkley is going nowhere in the summer. Speaking about the rumoured interest of Liverpool, the Spanish manager said, ‘In terms of speculation, we already turned down a £50m bid from (Manchester) United so we’re not going to take £38m from Liverpool.”
Martinez’s bullish comments about keeping Barkley are sure to disappoint the Reds, who are keen to splash the cash in the summer in order to strengthen their squad for next season.
Liverpool are set to be in the Champions League next season and Brendan Rodgers expects to attract a higher caliber of players in the transfer market this summer.
The Everton boss’ comments also include a hands off warning for Chelsea and Arsenal, who were targeting 19-year old Toffees defender John Stones.
Martinez insisted that the former Barnsley starlet is also not for sale in the summer, thus reinstating Everton’s attempts to consolidate on their good league campaign this season by keeping their star players at the club
Written by Steve Milne.
