Everton’s Asmir Begovic has expressed his regret that he was unable to agree a new contract to remain at Goodison Park but insists he is departing on good terms because he understands the financial “realities” the club are facing.
The goalkeeper took to social media on June 4 to deliver what appeared to be a farewell message to Everton supporters and when the club published their retained and released list five days later, the Blues confirmed he had rejected a new deal they had offered him. The Bosnia and Herzegovina international’s two-year contract with Everton will officially end in a week’s time when he will become a free agent.
Funds are understood to be tight at Goodison Park with Financial Fair Play restrictions continuing to bite and Begovic told the ECHO: “The business side is part of the game – I totally get that. That’s the unfortunate part because if it was just down to the people and everything else it would be easier.
“Of course there are certain realities that I understand the club are in and we couldn’t come to an agreement. There’s no hard feelings, that’s just the way it goes.
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“I understand where the club are at and the fixtures they have and we move on. It’s as simple as that.
“I cherished my time at Everton and I think I’m a better player for my time at Everton. I wish the club nothing but the very best.”
Joining from Bournemouth in 2021, Begovic made 10 appearances for the Blues, working under three different managers in Rafael Benitez, Frank Lampard and Sean Dyche. He said: “The chance to represent Everton in any shape or form for the past two years has been a great honour. It’s not something I’ve done lightly.
“I was really excited to be heading to the club because of its great tradition, knowing so much about it, the fans and Goodison Park having played there so many times before and that’s exactly how it turned out, it’s a very special club.
“The Everton supporters are so passionate. They live and breathe the club and that’s what it’s all about, you can see with Everton and Liverpool, it’s in people’s blood.
“The fans love Everton with everything they have. It was great for me to connect with the fans, the community, the city and I was able to open up my goalkeeping academy there in Liverpool.”
Even though Begovic served as understudy to Jordan Pickford, a memorable outing enabled him to get a close up view of one of Goodison Park’s strangest moments of recent years when the game against Newcastle United on March 17 last year was held up by a climate change activist who tied himself to the Everton keeper’s goal post using a cable. When the intruder was sentenced the following September after being found guilty of aggravated trespassing and pitch encroachment, Begovic tweeted that the incident had: “Scared the s*** out of me,” but he now admits he was relieved to get the clean sheet with Alex Iwobi going on to net the only goal of the game nine minutes into stoppage time to secure a precious win.
He said: “It was just odd. I didn’t know what to do myself at the time but fortunately we were able to carry on the game after a very strange moment.
“The win over Newcastle United last year was a special night and a special atmosphere but there have been highlights both on and off the pitch. I cherished every game I was able to play and even captain Everton a couple of times (he was named skipper for the trip to Arsenal on the last day of the 2021/22 Premier League season and Carabao Cup tie at Bournemouth last November) was an honour.
“Just being behind the scenes and being able to help hopefully assisted some of the younger players as well along with Jordan and the goalkeeping group to push everyone. There was the staff as well, because there are some fantastic people at that football club so it was really nice to make some really special memories and build some great relationships as well.”
Indeed, Begovic cites training alongside the England number one and the rest of Everton’s players in his position as one of his high points during his time on Merseyside. He said: “It was a pleasure to work with Jordan on a day-to-day basis. I wanted to take the challenge head on and be able to push him and help him succeed.
“It was great that we were able to push each other and pick each other’s brains was awesome. We had a fantastic goalkeeping group. One of the best things about the club was being able to work with them, Alan Kelly, Andy Lonergan, Billy Crellin while there was also Harry Tyrer and of course Eldin Jakupovic for a time as well and for a couple of years that was a special group.”
With over 400 career appearances under his belt with other spells in England including stints at Portsmouth, Macclesfield Town, Yeovil Town, Ipswich Town, Stoke City and Chelsea, Begovic is now looking forward to making his next move. He said: “I’m just assessing everything that’s going on in the market and what’s going on out there, how things unfold and what the best opportunity is for myself, that’s kind of where I’m at. It’s really nice to be able to spend some time with my wife and kids after not seeing them much over the course of the season.
“I’m really excited to see what the future holds but I’m fit and healthy and hope to continue being a part of this game for many years to come.”
