Phil Jagielka, the Everton defender, has admitted he fears the club’s parlous financial state may force David Moyes, the manager, and Bill Kenwright, the chairman, to sell Marouane Fellaini should a sizeable offer arise.
Chelsea, in particular, are thought to be considering a move for the 24-year-old midfield player, although Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have all monitored his progress in the past. They are unlikely to have been disheartened by his performance for Belgium against England at Wembley on Saturday.
Jagielka — charged with marking his clubmate for the final 20 minutes of that game — would be loath to see the former Standard Liège player, signed for £15 million on transfer deadline day in 2008, leave Goodison Park, but he is aware of the financial reality that would make a substantial bid impossible to refuse.
“Unfortunately, the way the club is, if somebody comes in with a £20 million plus offer, the chances are he is going to be sold,” Jagielka said. “We love Felli and we would love him to stay. There has not been that much transfer talk, but we know the situation we are in.
“We bought him for £15 million and I don’t think the club would take a loss. He has developed in that time, especially in the last few games of the season. Playing just off the front striker, he destroyed teams.”
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Fellaini was similarly effective against England and Jagielka is under no illusions that facing him was the perfect test for a makeshift defence before the European Championship finals.
“He is faster than I remember,” the Everton defender said. “He must have put a yard on. I can’t stop laughing every time I see him, and it’s not just his hair. He is in a fantastic team. Belgium have got a few players for the future.”
By the time Jagielka — called up to the England squad only after Gareth Barry’s injury-enforced departure — arrived on the pitch as a replacement for John Terry, Gary Cahill was already on his way to hospital for a scan on what proved to be a broken jaw. Alhough Terry, at least, was declared fit for the finals, such a sight only served as a reminder of how precarious a squad’s health is and how vital strong substitutes can be.
Fortunately, Jagielka’s partnership with his fellow understudy, Joleon Lescott, is a strong one, forged over the course of two seasons at Everton before the latter acrimoniously left for Manchester City.
“It’s familiarity really,” Jagielka said. “We’ve played together a lot, we know each other, we get on well off the pitch. When you play together, it does feel comfortable. We had some good seasons at Everton. Joleon moved on and has done well for himself since. But when you’ve played with someone a hundred times, it makes it that little bit easier.
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“Keeping two clean sheets in our two warm-up games is brilliant. I would not say we played amazingly well, but we created one or two decent chances and [Danny] Welbeck’s finish was fantastic. We have a week or so before the France game. We’ll be looking to sharpen up at the other end of the pitch and hopefully put in a good performance.”