It is now time to switch to a new Money AM football blog as the world cup is now over and we all look to the future.....World cup 2010 is over, Bravo Espana, and Forlan, once again and bring on the new season !.....I never expected the last thread to be such a success...thanks all.... so this new one might go on for years without the need to edit the title...we shall see...

John Stones: Everton must make a statement by keeping hold of wantaway defender
19:48, 25 AUGUST 2015 UPDATED 19:59, 25 AUGUST 2015
BY PHIL KIRKBRIDE


Roberto Martinez is up for the fight of keeping John Stones at Everton

“It's always the same question and always the same answer.”

It was only at lunchtime on Tuesday, just before the Everton players arrived at Finch Farm for training, that Roberto Martinez was at pains to reinforce the club’s stance.

The message remained clear: he is not for sale.

Soon after Martinez had spoken, John Stones handed in a transfer request.



And so now, after the young defender has had a change of heart and decided to force through a move to Chelsea, Everton’s resolve will truly be tested.

Martinez, in public and private, has been adamant about Stones’ future, and said last week that the submission of a transfer request would not change that.

Let’s hope that Everton are as good as their word.

Two fingers to Chelsea
Forget tying James McCarthy up to a new deal, bringing the Catalan Kid Gerard Deulofeu back or landing any other signings this summer, telling Stones is he going nowhere would be the best bit of business Everton will do.

It would be a statement.

It would be two fingers to Chelsea who have behaved with arrogance this summer, believing Everton would roll out the red carpet and be thankful for their interest.

It would also be a sign to the supporters that Everton are determined to build a team with Stones right at the heart of it.

But the Blues have to stand firm, resist the wishes of Stones and stand by Martinez, who has fronted their defiance from day one.

You can fully understand why Stones, a future England captain, has been attracted by Chelsea’s interest and would want to go to the Premier League champions.

He wouldn’t be human if he wasn’t.

But what is best for his career, right now, is to stay at Everton. With the European Championships coming up next summer, Stones needs to be playing regularly, Premier League football every week. That’s what he will get at Everton.

It’s near enough guaranteed but at Chelsea, despite what they may be telling him, that is far less certain.

Would Mourinho be as forgiving as Martinez?
Stones is emerging into a wonderful defender, a classy, cultured centre-half in the modern mould.

After being brought to Everton by David Moyes, it has been under Martinez that the 21-year-old has flourished and become the most in-demand defender in the country.

But after less than 50 appearances in the Premier League, Stones is still learning the game. As he did last season, Stones will still make mistakes. Martinez will continue to encourage his risky style of play and accept that mistakes are part of his development.

Will Mourinho be so forgiving? Would he think twice about dropping Stones? This, after all, is a man who substituted his captain at half time in a recent game.

That is not an environment he needs to be going into at this stage of his career.

He obviously feels differently. Not that he’s shown anything less than full commitment to Everton since this sorry saga began.

But now, all that matters, is how Everton feel.

They have been absolutely certain about Stones all summer. If they remain this way - and we hope they do - then Stones stays put.

It is disappointing that Stones has felt the need to hand in a transfer request but both he and the Blues can move on from this.

The question hasn’t changed but the situation has. The answer must remain the same.


(Personally if the Everton Board don't back Martinez in his stance reckon the Everton fans will be hiring the Red Arrows to fly over Goodison with banners) Latest betting is 1-6 he goes to Chelsea. This isn't over in my opinion bidding war will probably break out now, Stones is a Man U Fan if they show any interest my moneys on him going there.

Anywhere but Chelsea!!!

Everton FC will reject John Stones transfer request, says Roberto Martinez






23:31, 26 August 2015
By Neil Jones


Blues boss determined to keep defender and fires warning to Chelsea that money can't buy everything


Roberto Martinez says Everton will reject John Stones' transfer request on Thursday - as he reiterated his desire to keep the defender at Goodison.

Speaking after the Blues' 5-3 Capital One Cup second round win at Barnsley, Martinez confirmed the club had received a formal request from the 21-year-old, who is keen to push through a move to Chelsea.



Stones' request is yet to be officially rejected, but Martinez says the matter will be dealt with “in the morning” as he called on the footballing authorities to do more to protect players from becoming unsettled by transfer approaches.

Asked if Stones' request had been rejected, Martinez said: “Not yet. Today was a match day and that's a priority. We will reject it in the morning and get on with our business.”

Martinez insisted that chairman Bill Kenwright would not be forced into doing business with Chelsea despite reports of a fourth bid, which could be worth as much as £40m.

“The situation with John is very clear,” he said. “We care about him, we will protect him and give him everything we can to allow him to enjoy his football. During this tough period, we are going to be there for him.

“We have great ambition, great desire and great plans for John.



“We've got to a point now, in life and in football, where money can't buy everything. That's going to be a very strong statement from Everton; we want to be a winning side, and clearly John is a big part of the future.

“We are a football club with ambition and incredible history. We have a chairman that will do the right thing for the football club and for the team.

“And as a true Evertonian, we are clear that he (Kenwright) will not be easily influenced into taking the money and into doing things that will make our team weaker.

“This is not a moment in the campaign where we can use money to make us stronger. I feel really let down by the football authorities in this. We should look after our players.”

Asked if he was surprised to receive Stones' transfer request, he said: “I was not surprised. As a young man, you are under massive pressure and you are going to get influences.

“Where that influence came from, I don't know, but we will look after John, understand him. We need to give some value to contracts. There needs to be a more serious touch about making sure contracts are important.”

Martinez then turned his attention to the “footballing authorities”, reiterating his stance that the transfer window should close before the season gets underway.



He said: “I'm repeating myself, but I will say it again. I think it's wrong for the footballing authorities to allow the window to be open when there are important official games being played.

“We shouldn't put our players under that massive pressure, where it becomes a bit of a circus.

“I had no doubts about selecting John tonight, not at all. But it's an example for the football authorities. They have to do something about it.

“We're going up and down the country and every dressing room has the same situation.

“What do we end up with? We allow players to feel bad about themselves, not to be proud of representing their colours? It becomes unsustainable, and it needs to be changed.

“Players are human, and human beings deserve the time to think about the next step in their careers. But that can not happen when there are official games, big games, chances to go to Wembley.”

On the pitch, at least, Martinez had reason to smile; Everton fought back from a 2-0 half-time deficit to win 5-3 after extra time, and will now travel to Reading in round three next month.

Club Statement: From The Chairman




27 August 2015 17:45




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Everton Football Club has rejected a transfer request from John Stones.

Since the start of the transfer window, we have resolutely turned down offers from another Premier League football club for our player.

John is not for sale and he will remain a highly valued member of our first team squad.

Bill Kenwright
Chairman, Everton Football Club

Is anybody getting the betting right ?.....apart from ManCity....can't be 100% right on anybody...

A comment from a poster Daily Mail ;-

Everton of England 1 Chelsea of Russia 0

LOL!

I get it right every week rf and so could you , send me an email via moneyam and I'll show you how.

Meanwhile back in the real world I got 11 tickets to watch Wales qualify/cock it up against Israel a week Sunday.

1st of September and we're ranked higher than England for the first time since football was invented and also higher than Spain , Italy , France etc etc.

IMOH the rankings finally reflect a true picture of who really is the best ..... and Sepp Blatter is as innocent as Jack the Ripper :-)

Guess Stones will be on our books come the time we met his old team

And Martinez needs to grow up - the hypocrisy of buying a player from Barnsley and the bleating when he then takes the next step up - unbelievable

He seems to have forgotten his stalking of Lukaku

EFC paid top dollar for Lukaku. CFC think they can just click their fingers and the less cash rich clubs will roll over. Stones signed a five year contract last year, Martinez's stance is to be applauded. If Stones is sold eventually it will be on EFC's terms. Fxxk Off Mourinho!!!
"Money Can't Buy Stones"


As for the alleged hypocrisy of buying the player for £3 million pounds from Barnsley and his ultimate progress to the first team, maybe CFC should attempt same tactics instead of buying any player that shows potential, loaning them out, then selling them on for a profit.
How many players is it now CFC have out on loan 26-30. Shithouse club.

John Stones transfer saga: Roberto Martinez proves when a club say a player is not for sale - they can really mean it
Everton manager offers timely reminder to all clubs with players on long contracts that when they insist an asset is not for sale, it can be genuine


You can preach to the converted – those supporters who will hear whatever they want whatever the message – but deciphering what a manager truly means would have Bletchley Park working overtime.
Thus, Everton manager Roberto Martinez can receive the first bid for John Stones over a month ago with a robust ‘we won’t sell’ and hear the following day that his player is expected to end up at Chelsea.
Martinez can repeat this – he can even arm himself with a letter dispatched directly to Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck written in the thickest black ink, with the words ‘Not For Sale’ underlined, highlighted with a green marker and accompanied by exclamation marks - and still he will be informed it is a matter of when, not if, Stones heads south.
“Negotiating tactics,” is the usual, cynical interpretation of these hands off statements.
Just because you’ve said a player is not going anywhere does not mean that secretly you’re not hoping an extra £10 million on top of that ‘derisory’ opening off is coming your way. Many still suspect this is the approach Tony Pulis is adopting with Saido Berahino, despite West Bromwich Albion’s hardline approach to a bid from Tottenham Hotspur.


Liverpool certainly took that stance with Raheem Sterling over the summer. He was not for sale publicly, but privately the asking price was made clear from day one. Liverpool would sell for £50 million, and were £1 million short of this when Sterling left.
Two years earlier, when Luis Suarez was courted by Arsenal, it was a different tune being hummed at Anfeld. John W. Henry said no amount would force him to sell to a rival, regardless of the striker asking to leave. Many affiliated to Arsenal said Henry was bluffing, but he never was. Suarez stayed for another year.
The ‘Stones to Chelsea’ story has more in common with Suarez in 2013 than Suarez in 2014 or Sterling in 2015. Stones’s problem is the four years left on his contract. He will be as valuable in 2016 and 2017 as he is now, and he’ll be even more expensive if he excels at next summer’s European Championships. A bidding war involving the Manchester clubs in a year’s time could make Stones’ eventual departure to a Champions League side regrettable but slightly more palatable to Evertonians.

There should be some sympathy for Stones. His consolation for having a move he wanted blocked should be a significant pay rise to reflect his value as (potentially) the most expensive defender in English history. He’ll play in the Champions League eventually, but will need to be expertly man-managed for several weeks.
Chelsea did not help him or themselves with the timing of their offers. Universally praised for moving swiftly when they bought Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa in 2014, bidding for Stones three weeks before the start of the season was always going to rile Martinez who is a far more belligerent than his affable exterior suggests.
When Martinez said Stones would not be leaving in this window, he did not do so in the hope Jose Mourinho would return with a £40 million cheque.
Martinez’s response after Everton’s League Cup win over Barnsley was his most forceful to date. To be fair to the Spanish coach, until then he was a one-man media response unit over the whole saga, which might explain why Chelsea seemed unwilling to or incapable of taking what was said at face value.
Encouraging Stones to hand in a transfer request when you have no idea if a deal will ever be struck bordered on the obscene (we must presume Chelsea had a role in that since they appeared to know it was on its way a week before Stones wrote it).
If you want cynicism, there appears to be a trend to encourage a 'hate mob' to mobilise and turn on a player so the cameras can focus on abusers or shirt burners, thus making a position untenable. Do not mistake a few publicity grabbers for the Everton fanbase, the overwhelming majority recognising Stones as an ambitious player understandably tempted by the move. Stones was put in an invidious position by the trail of events. Martinez had warned it would change nothing – once more, that matter of a long contract limiting the power of the player.

Chairman Bill Kenwright’s public statement on Thursday evening was a welcome intervention and seems to have made the London club back off.
That could have come sooner. The initial lack of a public response to Stones’s formal letter was baffling and may even have contributed to many (wrongly) concluding the sands had shifted. Martinez took the opportunity with his impressive and reassuring performance at Oakwell to correct that error and clarify that was not the case, but it was a mood shifter when Kenwright confirmed it. It should not always be left to a manager facing the microphones to reaffirm a club’s stance. The manager, after all, is an employee who is a hostage to fortune.
We now – finally – have the assurance Martinez was speaking entirely for his board. A fanbase increasingly wary of their club's history of selling high on the last day of the transfer window must be confident there will be no compromise this time.
By Thursday evening we reached the point where Everton can not let Stones go. They left themselves no wriggle room.
No Chelsea bid can be deemed acceptable before September 1, regardless of how high Mourinho is prepared to go or how many transfer records threatened.
By resisting, Martinez will offer a timely reminder to all clubs with players on long contracts that when they insist an asset is not for sale, it is possible to really mean it.

Comment from above :-

Let us, once and for all, get this business of John Stones needing to move to a "bigger club" in order to secure his development into perspective. Everton have nine League titles, five FA cup wins and a European Cup-Winners Cup to their credit. It will be some many years before Chelsea can manage to match that record. And that presupposes that they manage to win a major trophy every year for the next ten years. I'm not sure when Chelsea made their first appearance into the Football League but it sure as hell wasn't before 1878. And then we have the record of the number of years in the top flight of English football. Arsenal, clearly have the longest time in the top flight. But who is next? Sorry Chelsea, but it is Everton, who have been in the top flight since 1954. In the intervening years Liverpool, Chelsea(sic, several times), Manchester United, Manchester City, Tottenham have all been RELEGATED into the SECOND tier in the years since 1954. Only Everton and Arsenal have stayed the course!
What determines greatness in a club is the length of time that that club has spent in the top flight of English football and the number of trophies it has won in that time. Clearly, on that basis, Everton, as a big club, is head and shoulders above Chelsea, and will be for many years into the future!
I think that many people confuse greatness with wealth. It is absolutely true that Chelsea have much greater wealth than Everton, but that is courtesy of one Roman Abramowitz. But that wealth has undermined Chelsea's ability to promote a good local academy to inspire local kids to develop.
Everton does not have a "Sugar Daddy", nor do we want one. We will continue with good governance to maintain our presence in the top flight by coaching and nurturing kids to develop their potential. And when all our good kids, prudent purchases and good governance bear fruit, we will win a title or two.
All of that is a measure of why Everton is a great club. Chelsea cannot match that! That is why John Stones is staying at Everton.
On the other hand I have to concede that Chelsea is a richer club than Everton. But that will cease when Abramowitz dies!!

Joe - Click on You Tube Everton Fans Sing Money Can't Buy Me Stones. LOL!!!

No need to - but what a load of tosh on the big club argument

Come on Wolves, Newcastle, Weds and Leeds

Woo hoo we going to France !!!!

Unless Scotland beat the Germans : they will be out of it.....the Irish still have a big chance....

Test

We only have to beat Andorra in our last game and we're there.

A win tomorrow against Israel and against Andorra and we top the group , the game against Bosnia inbetween is irrelevant even if we lose 20-0 as the first criteria to decide positions is the head to head results.

Party time in 17 hours 30 minutes :)

Israel came and "parked the bus" and Wales didn't want to lose.

Only got to draw against Andorra at home to qualify but we blew our chance of ending up top of the group imo thanks to our useless got lucky jack bastard manager's tactics.

Was like watching paint dry.

Congratulations to Rooney.....incredible record !.....can just imagine Kane in an Real madrid shirt alongside Bale.....England barely broke sweat and are starting to look impressive.....capable of the euro-semis I reckon....beyond that is a lottery...but the semis yes......

EVERTON 3 chelsea (small club)1 LOL LOL LOL!!!!!!!!!

CAN"T BUY ME STONESSSSSS STONESSSSS

MONEY CAN"T YOU BUY STONES!!!!!

THE SCHOOL OF SCIENCE IS ON THE WAY BACK!