There are bigger names mentioned in all the transfer rumors going on, but Manchester United haven’t given up on their efforts to sign Leighton Baines from Everton, hoping that their managerial connection will be enough to convince the left back and his club to finally sell him.
Signed until 2015, Baines has been offered an extension that will pay him £65,000 per week, which isn’t remotely close to what United will offer him if Everton agree to sell the player. There’s no longer a question regarding Baines being the best English left back, and generally the best player at the position in the Premier League.
Everton aren’t exactly keen on the option of starting giving up on their best players just because David Moyes is gone. It seems that the difference between a top-half table team to a club battling for relegation. Moyes has been a big part of Everton’s relative success over the last decade, and with his departure, it seems the key players at the club, mostly Baines and Fellaini, are trying to find their way out.
Manchester United do have Patrice Evra at their disposal, who actually became quite a prolific scorer all of a sudden last season, but there’s no doubt that his ability as a defender has been on constant decline over the last couple of seasons, and there’s no doubt Moyes would prefer Baines than giving Alexander Buttner a chance to capture that spot in the lineup.
With enough pressure from United, Baines will eventually leave Everton, or make it difficult for them to hang on to him. Baines will probably be valued at £15-20 million, maybe even a bit more, but he seems to be a move much more likely for a club like United than the record-breaking suggestions of them being linked to Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.
Baines has appeared 17 times for England since making his debut in 2010, and another fine and productive season in 2012-2013, scoring 7 goals and adding 8 assists for Everton.