Ken Barkway‘s view on the non-transfer saga involving John Stones…
So the elaborate mating ritual that is the transfer window has nearly closed. Allowing us a brief, momentary respite before the Random Bullshit Generator is dusted down again, and the press entertaining themselves by making up rumours about likely (and a fair bit of unlikely) January window activity.
The biggest noise in this transfer window has been about a transfer that won’t happen (probably!). Yes we’re talking about the Game of Stones. It’s a Chelsea story (kind of) and it’s a great case study of many aspects of the transfer business.
Early on Jose expressed little more than an admiration of the player, while Everton publicly denied that he was for sale. Jose clearly said that if he were told he wasn’t for sale then Chelsea would walk away, they didn’t, which suggests that out of the public glare that there was a deal to be done at the right price. Since then, there appears to have been a cat and mouse game of Chelsea offer and Everton private refusal/public denial. This is as far as can be discerned from the press noise. Everton have said they value him at £40m and he’s definitely not for sale. Well so far so contradictory and confusing.
Interestingly Everton like to make out that Chelsea have indulged in the Spanish pursuit of unsettling the player in the press, although the evidence doesn’t really point this way. Chelsea have remained characteristically taciturn on the matter save that solitary mention in a recent manager’s press conference.
Now Everton’s public standpoint on this seems quite superficially consistent – but it’s not. They are simultaneously claiming to be a big club with ambitions all the while being little Everton heroically fighting off the big, bullying, nouveau riche upstart from West London. Chelsea have throughout kept quiet and again as far as can be gleaned from the press hyperbole; they have conducted business in the 
correct manner while Everton through either Martinez or Kenwright shout loudly that he’s definitely, definitely not for sale. The ladies do appear to protest too much however. Everton appear to have kept the “deal” on the back pages by perversely denying he’s for sale on pretty much a daily basis.
The next noises from the blue side of Stanley Park were that if he wanted to move he needed to put in a transfer request. Which he duly did. Thus demonstrating quite publicly that he wants the move. And let’s face it, money apart, working with Jose, John Terry all the while having a chance of silverware does sound attractive. The chuckle brothers representing the club then think it’s wise to publicly reject the request. Thereby humiliating a player they say they want to keep.
This posturing is a public act of desperation by an increasingly unpopular regime. Naturally it’s seen as heroic by Evertonians. But it may well prove to be something of a pyrrhic victory. Stones valuation has hit a perfect sweet spot for Everton, his age, the stage of his contract, the fact that a club like Chelsea happen to be in the market for precisely that kind of player. And he’s English – which instantly attracts a 100% English tax.
Instead of selling at the top of the market they are likely to have a very unhappy and unpopular player (with the shrill voiced Goodison diehards anyway), and that is a risk. We have already seen some very scouse unpleasant invective spat at the player after the midweek league cup game. This seems to be a particularly Liverpudlian way to demonstrate that a player is wanted. That and shirt burning obviously. Divorces on Merseyside must be rum affairs.
Putting all emotion aside though – it remains curious. Most clubs are primed for offers; it has become a very professional, studied business model. The hugely successful Lyon team which dominated French football prior to the arrival of PSG as a brash, big spending force had a model which to a greater or lesser extent most clubs now follow. It’s not quite Moneyball but does share some common DNA. Lyon had a committee that valued every player at the club, if an offer is received in excess of that value the player is sold. It was binary – 
it removed all emotion from the process. It was either a good deal or it wasn’t. It can be assumed that Chelsea, in recent years anyway, have been working to a similar model. Hence the departures of players like David Luiz and Juan Mata for what looked like silly sums. It’s what confident clubs, run as businesses, do. They then look to replace with equally good players, or better, or younger, or more tactically suited, or whatever. Everton who admit they do need the money seem to be taken aback at the player being attractive to other clubs and have gone on the defensive.
So we’ve a few more days to find out how this chapter of this saga ends. I do suspect that there are twists to come. Maybe he’ll buy out his contract (yes that can be done) – it’s sure to be cheaper than £40m. You see Everton don’t hold all the aces. In fact I fear that it’s a no win situation for the club. Sell and they look rather silly, don’t sell and an unhappy player loses motivation or form, they look silly or even if they lose the player at a later date for less, yep, they look silly. Quietly thrashing out a deal would have been in everyone’s best interest but I fear that ship may already have sailed.
Follow Ken on twitter @KenBarkway
