The Everton playmaker appears to have snubbed a late deadline-day switch to Chelsea.
Paul Merson has moved to clarify comments he made about Everton playmaker Ross Barkley on Sky Sports News last night.
The 23-year-old looked set to seal a £30 million move to Chelsea after Everton accepted a bid from the Premier League champions.
However, Barkley walked out of his medical at Chelsea’s training ground and travelled back to Liverpool in a shock deadline-day twist.
Speaking immediately after the news broke, Merson, who twice acknowledged that he did not know the full story, was critical of the England international and said, “Well you can’t live in Liverpool all your life”.
The former Arsenal and England man received something of a backlash on Twitter for what many believed to be a dig at Liverpool as a city, but the Sky Sports pundit has sought to clear up the controversy on Twitter today.
Barkley is out injured with a hamstring problem and it remains to be seen when he is back. That, according to The Sun, is why Tottenham Hotspur did not pursue the talented midfielder.
But it was reported by The Mail on Thursday that Mauricio Pochettino’s assistant Jesus Perez was the driving force behind getting Spurs to sign him, and that a move was back on.
Barkley is out of contract with the Goodison Park club next summer.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
