Everton still being linked with Barcelona goalkeeper

UPDATE - Original story 30th May, updated June 14th

Bizarrely, this rumour is still doing the rounds two weeks later, with even more outlets now reporting on it.

Everton just signed Jonas Lössl last week to consolidate the goalkeeper position, with the former Huddersfield starter likely to serve as backup for Jordan Pickford with veteran Maarten Stekelenburg closing out the group of three.

However, Portuguese outlet A Bola (via Sport Witness) are now claiming that the Blues have made contact with La Liga champions Barcelona regarding their backup goalie Jasper Cillessen.

The Dutchman has played second fiddle to Marc-André ter Stegen this season, and has been reportedly looking for a move away from the Catalan side to get more playing time despite having two more years on his current contract. Manchester United and Benfica have both been mentioned as having interest in the 30-year-old who has 48 international caps for the Netherlands.

The rumours about Everton make little sense as Pickford doesn’t appear to be going anywhere for starters. Most of the Premier League top six appear to be well-settled at the position, and the only doubt being at Old Trafford where rumour has it that David De Gea has refused to sign an extension. The Red Devils have been linked with Pickford in the past, but the Blues have set their price-tag high for the England no. 1, and United might well find Cillessen’s release clause of €60m more affordable.

Interestingly, Cillessen is represented by SEG (Sports Entertainment Group) who are also the agents for a number of primarily Dutch or Holland-based players. Everton’s Director of Football Marcel Brands has previous experience with dealing with SEG, and some of the top players they cover have been linked with the Blues before - Memphis Depay, Stefan de Vrij, Kasper Dolberg, and Kevin Strootman. So are these rumours about contact between Everton and SEG really about Cillessen, or one of the other players?