Everton have agreed a deal in principle to offload their January transfer window flop Dele Alli to Turkish club Besiktas.
The Blues have struck an agreement that would see the former England star join on an initial year loan deal, with a commitment to a permanent transfer, after boss Frank Lampard made the decision to ditch him swiftly. But the sticking point has come over the player’s money demands.
When Everton signed him in January, they agreed a fee that could be worth up to £40m to Tottenham …but only IF he hit all the bonus targets in that contract. Crucially, the Blues agreed they would pay nothing down for the midfielder, only paying an initial £10m when he had reached 20 appearances for the Blues, which allowed them to get close to the near £100,000 a week wages Dele was on at Spurs.
But now he wants a package which will see him maintain a similar financial deal before he agrees the switch to Turkey, and the fate of the transfer is in his hands. It had become increasingly obvious at Goodison that boss Lampard had decided by the summer that Dele would not make the grade with his Everton team.
The deal the Mersey club struck with Tottenham ensured there would be no payment at all last season, pushing that payment into the new campaign. Crucially it gave the manager time to form a true opinion of the former England star and his chances of returning to the top level.
Yet after the summer, it has become increasingly obvious around the club that Lampard has no faith in the player, and has NO plans to include him in his team - thus avoiding that initial £10m for 20 appearances.
Dele has made two appearances from the bench since the restart, taking his number of games so far to just 13 - with only ONE start in all that time, the final game of last season against Arsenal, when Everton were safe from relegation.
And Lampard put him on in those two games in the knowledge that the club were already in negotiations with both Besiktas and Spurs over his transfer out of the club, before he hit the 20-match mark. Talks have been ongoing for the best part of the last fortnight, with the central point of wages key to the move.
Besiktas for their part are confident they can find a way to satisfy Dele, and it is understood the Turkish club want to wrap up details before Friday, when they hope Dele will be in Istanbul for a medical before signing.
But the final decision remains with the player - who must decide whether to accept the prospect of regular football, or being banished to the wilderness at Goodison.
Everton have also been in talks with Southampton over a deal for their striker Che Adams, but so far have been unable to agree a fee for the Wales international forward, while Neil Maupay is another candidate on their list. They want to bring in a striker before the weekend, with main target man Dominic Calvert-Lewin sidelined for at least six weeks.
The Blues have turned down a near £45m offer for their young forward Anthony Gordon from Chelsea, but are bracing themselves for a fresh bid from the London club.
