David Harrington met Everton staff before transfer collapse, Fleetwood Town contract now agreed
Everton came within touching distance of signing Cork City goalkeeper David Harrington, but a late injury to his shoulder saw the entire deal collapse.
Harrington enjoyed a superb season with Cork last time out, securing 14 clean sheets in 19 first-team starts. However, he missed out on the final three matches of his side’s title charge after tearing cartilage in his shoulder.
Not only did the injury ruin his chances of finishing the season well with Cork, but it also stopped the 22-year-old from completing a permanent move to Everton.
As reported by the Irish Examiner, “Everton had agreed a six-figure upfront fee in lieu of Fifa compensation and Harrington met with the Toffees’ top brass including compatriot Alan Kelly, Frank Lampard’s goalkeeping coach.”
The move was expected to take place in January but instead, Harrington underwent surgery as the deal fell through. With Everton unwilling to take a risk in signing him, Fleetwood Town took advantage to secure him on a three-year deal.
The move officially goes through on January 1, although Harrington isn’t expected to recover from his injury until mid-February.
Unfortunate
It seems Everton had found a real goalkeeping gem in the shape of Harrington, but circumstances simply didn’t line up for both parties at the time.
His stats for Cork are eye-catching to say the least, and it’s no surprise that Kelly was keen to work with Harrington based off his numbers alone.
The Toffees have now obviously missed out on Harrington, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Toffees continued to monitor his progress in League One ahead of a future move.
If Harrington does shine at Fleetwood over the next few years then he could put himself in a great position to sign for Everton and work his way into the first team with Jordan Pickford bound to be in decline by then.
Hopefully, it’s not a collapsed deal that Everton look back on sourly. Everyone at the club will hope Harrington enjoys plenty of success at Fleetwood, just not enough to make the Toffees jealous of missing out on him.