Everton want the Iceland international and Swansea City have confirmed he will miss the club’s pre-season tour.
Following the news that Gylfi Sigurdsson has not travelled with his Swansea City teammates for their pre-season tour of the United States, one wonders if the hard part is over in Everton’s prolonged pursuit of the 27-year-old.
As reported by the Telegraph, Everton’s bid of £40million was rejected, however negotiations are expected to continue, with a resolution that much easier now the player has seemingly shown his hand.
Selling clubs often hold all the cards but all it takes is a player to express his frustration, one way or another, and the buying club suddenly has the sliver of an advantage.
The Swans will have seen the inflated transfer market and learned of Everton’s inflated coffers and saw the perfect opportunity to hold out for the best possible deal for their talisman.
They are right to do so. However, now the player has made a statement of his own, albeit a silent one that involves missing the vital pre-season tour, his exit is all but set.
Everton may still have to dig deeper than they would have liked to get a deal for Sigurdsson done and dusted in the coming days, yet the hard part could already be over, because rightly or wrongly, it seems the player has made up his mind.
Everton will be hoping to use that to their advantage, even if it only knocks a few million off Swansea’s £50million valuation.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
