BBC Sport journalist shares update on Everton and Maxime Esteve after Burnley speculation from France
Everton are not currently looking to take Burnley defender Maxime Esteve this summer following the Clarets’ relegation, according to BBC Sport’s Shamoon Hafez on social media.
Hafez’s post on X [29 May] reports that there have been no discussions with Burnley from the Everton recruitment staff regarding Esteve, whose initial loan from Montpellier became permanent just last week.
It was only claimed earlier on Wednesday afternoon by L’Equipe that Everton, along with West Ham United, had opened preliminary talks to sign the 22-year-old centre-back.
Hafez shared: “Everton have not held discussions about signing defender Maxime Esteve from Burnley.
“[The] Frenchman is not a player the Toffees are interested in at the moment.”
Everton’s defensive state of play
The news that Everton are not said to currently be pursuing Esteve could turn out to be a welcome claim for Toffees fans, as the club have declared they will not be bullied into selling Jarrad Branthwaite at any price less than how they value the England man.
If Esteve was in fact to wind up at Goodison Park this summer, the French youth international would not be the first to make the move from Burnley, as James Tarkowski and Dwight McNeil have done in recent seasons – and certainly not forgetting Sean Dyche himself, albeit following a nine-month hiatus.
Tarkowski has backed Branthwaite’s focus on performing well for Everton, with the ex-Clarets man himself happy and settled at Goodison.
Ben Godfrey, who at one stage looked close to a January switch to Atalanta, is likely to stay put, whilst the club remain working on deals to keep veteran duo Seamus Coleman and Ashley Young on Merseyside.
Of course, looking bluntly at the situation, it would either be Branthwaite or Jordan Pickford who recoup the highest funds at Goodison, and the club must closely track their financial records over the coming weeks in order to avoid any further PSR sanctions.
In other Everton news, a recently appointed EFL boss has talked of his love for Everton ahead of potentially managing the club one day.
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