Rumour mongers on overtime
By Chris Kirwan
March 19 2003
The papers are once again refusing to believe that Everton haven't got any money in the bank; it seems that the Blues are the flavour of the month in terms of transfer rumours.
In recent days it has come to light that Moyes is ‘set to swoop’ for Joe Cole and Stilian Petrov. Add this to the money that we’ll be paying for Pennant, Etherington and Darren Bent and we’ll soon be outspending Manchester United, and will nearly be keeping up with Houllier’s outlay on French reserve players.
While Moyes has excelled at getting the most out of his money by means of money-saving deals that Arthur Daley would be proud of, it’d really be a coup to get a player of Cole’s reputation and ability on a similar transaction to that of Yobo or Wright. Moyes himself reacted:
"Until the board tells me different, we will have no money to spend until the summer and even that will depend on where we finish in the Premiership.
"We watch players every week and we have scouts out at matches every night, but I know what the financial situation is. At the moment there is no more money to spend."
The fact remains that one season in Europe will not suddenly transform Everton’s financial plight, nor should it alter the aims at the start of the new season. Look at Norwich, for a couple of seasons they were at the summit of the top flight beating Bayern Munich in Europe. Then Mike Walker departed for Goodison and they started their descent.
It would be dangerous to raise expectations too high. While we’d all love to see the likes of Joe Cole at Goodison we simply will not have that sort of money to splash around, and the funds that are available to Moyes will have to be as well spent as the money was last summer. Finances are in contemporary football are unstable, and the last scenario the Blues will want is that where financial risks backfire.
The financial plan has been highlighted with the confirmation that Brian McBride is to depart after this weekend’s fixture at Highbury. While McBride has surpassed all expectation, the deal that the Crew was demanding was simply not viable for a player of his age. He has certainly played his part in an excellent season with several superb performances. Moyes reflected:
“He has scored 4 goals in 8 games, which is a good record for any player in the Premier League. “He has played a big part in our season at Everton and we wish him all the very best for the future.”
The role that Nick Chadwick has to play no doubt influenced the decision to not pursue McBride. Chadwick is on loan at Derby, but recently stated: "I'm happy at Everton, as I always have been. I'm hopeful that my long-term future is at Goodison.” I believe Chadwick is an outstanding talent. He was superb at the tail end of last season, and hopefully he can stay injury free and have a big impact next season.
Elsewhere….Pistone is out for six weeks, leaving Yobo or Watson to fill in at right back against Arsenal in the absence of Hibbert….Peter Clarke is impressing Brian Horton at Port Vale….Rooney is set to play again for the reserves tonight alongside Ferguson, Pembo, Carsley, and Alexandersson.