Everton midfielder Ross Barkley is one of the more plausible names on Chelsea’s shortlist as we head into the final 11 hours of the 2017 summer transfer window, but not only are Chelsea £10m short of Everton’s £35m valuation of the 23-year-old, the player himself apparently would prefer Spurs rather than an actual chance at trophies.
According to the BBC’s local Merseyside-focused arm, Barkley could certainly leave Everton today, but even though Chelsea want him, he’d want Spurs instead. A bit Oxlade-Chamberlain-ish, that. Where’s the ambition, Ross?
Ross Barkley could leave #Everton today. Chelsea want him but he'd rather join Tottenham. They have til 11pm to sort it out! #DeadlineDay pic.twitter.com/iqvGkhbnlM
— BBC Merseyside Sport (@bbcmerseysport) August 31, 2017
That said, with opinion largely divided over Barkley, who hasn’t quite made the strides many expected him to make after bursting onto the scene as a teenager, not spending £35m on him may not be the worst idea. Unfortunately, the problem of Chelsea’s depth remains very much a real thing and as much as we’d want, is not going to fix itself magically, without some investment (i.e. overpaying) in the final hours of the transfer window.