Many at Goodison Park were surprised by reports linking Everton with a potential £30 million move for Norwich City’s Max Aarons earlier in the summer transfer window, as reported by The Athletic.
With just five weeks before the window slams shut, Daniel Farke’s Canaries can see light at the end of the tunnel.
Norwich have reached mid-July with just one of their promotion-winning heroes having bid farewell.
Emi Buendia won’t be an easy man to replace of course – he was the Championship’s best player last season with 15 goals and 17 assists to his name – but at least Farke can still count on Todd Cantwell, Teemu Pukki and the rapid, rampaging Aarons.
Barely a day went by a few months ago without the England U21 international right-back being linked with one club or another.
Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have all been mentioned as potential destinations for the jet-heeled Aarons, as were an Everton side looking to ease the burden on the soon-to-be 33-year-old Seamus Coleman.
But while Aarons may have admirers on the blue half of Merseyside, The Athletic says the ‘strength of the speculation’ linking the former Luton Town youngster with a big-money move took many at Everton by surprise.
In fact, the Toffees have been tipped to sign Aarons since the early days of January amid doubts over the long-term future of Jonjoe Kenny.
Are Norwich City set to keep Max Aarons this summer?
Although while Aarons has ‘the potential and quality to play for the best clubs in the world’ Farke cannot understand why the 21-year-old would sacrifice guaranteed game-time at Norwich for a place on the bench elsewhere.
“If I was to walk in his shoes, what we can offer right now is a club that totally trusts him, a head coach who totally trusts him, teammates who love him, fans who love him,” Farke said.
“He will play in the best league in the world next season and has a good chance to play many, many minutes. It’s a great chance for him and us to shine at the top level.
“It makes no sense to travel to a different club where he might be able to earn a few more pounds. My gut feeling is it makes no sense at his age to move somewhere where he is a back-up.
“For me, he has the potential and quality to play for the best clubs in the world.”
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