Lescott Deja Vu

Everton has sent a strong message to both Arsenal and Manchester United that Phil Jagielka is not for sale. This seems eerily familiar to how the Joleon Lescott affair started out. Not to say this will play out exactly the same, because Lescott wanted to leave and was vocal about it. Just saying that this was how it started last year too.

Here's some other transfer rumors and news:

-Since there are a number of clubs keen on securing West Ham's Carlton Cole, West Ham is looking at Yakubu as a possible replacement. There is definitely a possibility that Moyes is willing to sell Yakubu as long as a decent price is offered. Yakubu has struggled to find form since returning from a ruptured Achilles tendon. Sources: ESPN and Goal.com.

- I don't know how good this source is so you are going to have to bear with me, but tribalfootball.com says that we may be in the race (with Aston Villa) to sign Tottenham winger David Bentley. A fee 10 million pounds seems like a bargain.

- This news is a little late but Dan Gosling is ahead of schedule in his recovery from knee surgery. He was projected to be out for 9 months, but is expected to recover sooner than that according to BBC Sport.

- Marseille's Hatem Ben Arfa is on David Moyes' radar yet again. He has had a great season with the Ligue 1 winners and has voiced his interest for playing in England. "To have a chance to play in England would be wonderful but the sporting project is more interesting to me than any sums of money." Source: Goal.com
Seems like David Moyes is getting ready to replace Steven Pienaar in case he leaves. David Bentley and Hatem Ben Arfa are both wingers like Pienaar and would be good, cheap replacements.

Rumor Mill Update

These are some updates to previous rumors heard:

- Daily Post has a great article that talks about Moyes' interest in Jermaine Beckford. It pretty much says that Moyes is still considering Beckford and that he is one of a couple of strikers that he is "mulling over". The Toffees are also facing competition from Parma as well as a bunch of other clubs.

- One of the other strikers that Moyes seems to be considering is Bobby Zamora of Fulham. The sun reports that Aston Villa and Birmingham City are also vying for Zamora's services. I don't think Zamora will be a good signing. The 8 million pound price tag seems high for someone who historically has had trouble finding the back of the net. I would rather have Bellamy or even take a shot with Beckford.

- Goal.com is reporting that Chelsea and Manchester United are "ready to go toe-to-toe" for Jack Rodwell. The article then precedes to explain that even though Everton would like to keep him, we may lose him just like we failed to keep Wayne Rooney. One thing they forget is that Everton had to sell Rooney in order to stay afloat as the club was going through some financial difficulties in 2004.

Everton Updates

Alright, so I've all but given hope on Everton making it to Europe. We need Liverpool to lose their next two matches while we win ours. Seems highly unlikely, especially because Liverpool plays a woeful Hull City on May 9th.

So I'm going to stop talking about it and instead start talking about how our club can finish strong and look forward to contending for the title next season! It's been quite a while since we've had a team that was strong enough to have these types of expectations, but as long as our team stays somewhat intact, I think this is possible. I will talk about what went right, what went wrong, as well as changes we need to make to the club after the season ends (World Cup coverage too).

For now, these are a couple of things that have happened that i missed the last couple of days.

- Looks like The Toffees have put a £20 million dollar price tag on Steven Pienaar. Contract negotiations have also stalled. I like the price tag, so we don't lose him, but my biggest fear of all is that he doesn't sign, he plays for us next season and then leaves on a free transfer. Hopefully the club sorts this out, but I would rather him sign or leave (so we get the transfer money), no in between.

- David Moyes has been linked to Manchester United, which makes me nervous. Even though he said there is no way the news is true, it would be a HUGE blow to Everton. He has made some spectacular signings as well as getting Everton to play and contend for the top half of the Prem League.

- The Toffees have become favorites to sign Paul Scharner from Wigan. I don't know if I would like this signing. He is a good player from a mediocre team, but he plays a position where we have a lot of talent.

- Both Mikel Arteta and Victor Anichebe are trying to get last minute call-ups to their respective World-Cup squads. Mikel Arteta has been paying excellent football but is trying to make an already stacked midfield on the Spanish National Team. Victor Anichebe on the other hand is most likely trying for a backup role on the Nigerian National Team, where there have been some injuries (Yakubu will most likely make the roster). Other current players on Everton that will most likely be included on their national squads are: Tim Cahill (Australia), Phillippe Senderos (Switzerland), Tim Howard (USA), Yakubu (Nigeria), Luois Saha (France), Steven Pienaar (South Africa), John Heitinga (Holland), and Joseph Yobo (Nigeria).

Steven Pienaar seems to want his future resolved sooner rather than later, according to this article by skysports.com. Pienaar wants to know where he will be next year before the World Cup begins. This is a great thing for Everton because most likely we will either sign an extension with him or sell him, instead of letting him go for free after next season.

Pienaar plays the attacking midfielder role perfectly for Everton, but I am not so sure he would fit in with every club. At this time, we know that Tottenham along with Man U. and Liverpool are interested in him(maybe some other foreign clubs too).

The two big question marks next season are Jack Rodwell and Pienaar, and although I would like both of them to stay, I would rather keep Rodwell. David Moyes seems hell-bent on keeping everyone so we may be able to sign Pienaar, but I am not too worried, as long as we get a good price for him.

Hopefully, this problem sees a solution soon so we don't have another last minute scramble to find a replacement player (like the Joleon Lescott incident).

Arteta Sorry for Eye Poking Incident, Kind Of

Interesting article by Guardian.co.uk. Supposedly, Mikel Arteta knew Morten Gamst Pedersen might make some hasty tackles. That combined with the fact that Arteta has had quite a bit of injury problems recently (groin tear recently and knee ligament damage for most of last season) resulted in his angry eye poking reaction.

“I probably shouldn't have reacted like I did but there have been a few times – not just in this match – when he's made bad tackles," said the Spaniard. "I don't mind it when they're fair or tough, I accept it with no problem. But with him it's different and he knows that – I told him after it as well.”

Arteta did apologize, even though he made it seem that Pedersen had it coming.

"But I made a mistake, I shouldn't have reacted and I apologise for it. I probably got more upset because I was out for so long and don't want a stupid challenge like that injuring me again."

I don’t mind that Arteta keeps tabs on players that could hurt him or tackle aggressively, but he really needs to keep his cool. Everton can’t afford to lose him, especially with the impact he has had while playing. David Moyes has talked to him, and I doubt that Arteta will react like that again. He is usually level headed and that reaction seemed to be an anomaly.

Liverpool’s win over West Ham puts them five points ahead of us and really gives us no room for error. There are only three matches left in the season and we may need some outside help for Europe to be possible at this point.