Everton to announce new Ashley Young contract as last stages update drops
Everton veteran Ashley Young is close to finalising a new one-year contract extension with the club, according to Sky Sports News.
In a post shared on X [18 June], Sky reporter Jo Wilson confirmed that negotiations between Young and the Toffees were “in the final stages”, and the deal could be officially confirmed within the next week.
Young turns 39 in three weeks’ time and made his first appearance in the Premier League in 2006, accumulating 34 outings in all competitions last season for Everton – mainly at left-back.
The news follows confirmation that Blues captain Seamus Coleman has also signed a one-year extension to his contract, as the Irishman prepares to enter his sixteenth season at Goodison Park.
Everton keeping experience in their squad
Everton are certainly demonstrating their willingness to keep key players in the squad as they enter their career twilight years, citing their importance to the squad unit.
Coleman and Young are seasoned, reliable professionals who understand the club, understand the Premier League and are thoroughly respected examples in the dressing room for exciting younger players.
While there was an initial fear that the Toffees could only afford to keep one of the duo around beyond this summer, supporters will back the club’s call that the extensions make sense from both a footballing perspective, and a financial one.
Under pressure to balance the books and avoid a repeat of PSR sanctions, the Blues evidently see that keeping the two is a far more sensible call than losing both for nothing and having to fork out for two experienced replacements to fill the void – which would be far from easy.
Whether Young – who has made a gargantuan 750 professional appearances during a stellar career – is afforded regular game time by Sean Dyche next season remains to be seen, but his contribution to the club cannot be understated.
In other Everton news, the club have made a special request to the Premier League surrounding the 2024-25 fixture announcement.
For more Everton news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.