Everton’s midfielder Ross Barkley (R) vies with Arsenal’s Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka during the English Premier League football match between Everton and Arsenal on December 13, 2016
LONDON, United Kingdom, Jan 6 – Chelsea are closing in on a deal for Everton midfielder Ross Barkley, who was expected to complete his medical at the club on Friday.
Barkley’s contract with the Toffees expires at the end of the season, and if a deal is done, it would see the 24-year-old leave the team he joined as an 11-year-old in 2005.
Since making his senior debut in 2011, Barkley has scored 21 times in 150 appearances, however, the Liverpool-born star had not featured for Everton in 2017/18 largely due to a serious hamstring injury.
Nonetheless, manager Antonio Conte believes he can still have an impact if given time to make a full recovery. He told reporters: “We are talking about an English player, a young player, he is a good prospect for Chelsea.
“I think that the club decided for this investment. This is a good opportunity for the club to buy this player. For sure, it is a good prospect for Chelsea.
“He is very young, he has a lot of space for improvement. He is very strong physically, has good technique. He is a good prospect but at the same time it will be very important to understand, if he signs for the club, that he has to recover from his injury.
“Don’t forget he had a bad injury, he had surgery, he has not played for seven months.”
