Everton are allegedly targeting a move for John Stones this summer after the England international was released by Manchester City.
A story from Sportsboom even claims that Everton are in advanced talks to sign the former Barnsley man after he became a free agent.
However, an update from Marco Barzaghi in Italy should well and truly put The Friedkin Group and David Moyes off a swoop for Stones.
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John Stones wants a £7.3m-a-year contract
The respected Italian journalist claims Inter Milan are also interested in the 32-year-old, but his wage demands are proving to be problematic.
Barzaghi says Inter Milan have been told Stones wants a deal worth €8.5m (£7.3m) annually at his next club, which equates to roughly £141,000-a-week.
Everton can afford to pay that salary given the wealth within the Premier League nowadays, but it feels like it could potentially be a huge waste of money considering how little the centre-back featured last season.
Stones made only 18 appearances across all competitions for Manchester City, with just 13 of those coming as starts.
It means Everton could end up paying a fortune just to have the England star available for a handful of games, which is not what Moyes needs considering he already has an unreliable defender when it comes to fitness in Jarrad Branthwaite.
That £141,000-a-week salary would be much better spent going towards a package to sign a younger centre-back with a better medical record.
Furthermore, the centre-back department is not exactly in significant need of a new face at this moment in time anyway, considering Moyes still has James Tarkowski, Michael Keane and Jake O’Brien to use in that area, as well as Branthwaite once he returns to full fitness.
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With all of the above taken into consideration, we feel Everton need to walk away and target a cheaper, more reliable option than Stones if a new centre-back is to arrive this summer.
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