James Tarkowski could miss out on signing a new contract at Everton after fresh concerns emerged about his long-term future.
According to former Manchester United and Blackburn chief scout Mick Brown, who remains well-connected within the footballing world, as he exclusively told Football Insider that David Moyes is not planning to hand the 32-year-old a new deal “any time soon”.
With Tarkowski entering the final year of his deal at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, assessments are set to be made about his level of performance over the course of the season.
Following Tarkowski’s season-ending injury last season, he has come back into Moyes’ starting eleven for all four of their games so far this season, despite some ongoing doubts.
Everton are preparing to open contract talks with Jordan Pickford in the near future, but Tarkowski’s situation is more complicated, and discussions over his deal are set to be delayed.
Despite Everton’s strong start to the season, Tarkowski has struggled, making costly mistakes in the 2-0 win against Brighton and conceding a penalty in the defeat to Leeds.
Brown, who has a wealth of experience in top-level player recruitment after spending over a decade at Man United during their most successful period, has revealed the Toffees are looking for signs that the defender might start “slowing down”.
“Tarkowski has been tremendously important to Everton over the last few years,” he told Football Insider.
“He’s done a fantastic job for them first under Sean Dyche and now under David Moyes, but he isn’t getting any younger, he’s into his 30s and that’s the issue they’re facing now.
“If there are signs that he starts to slow down and lose his legs a bit, that would be a huge concern for Everton with regard to his future.
As a result of their ongoing concerns about his age, Everton are set to wait until closer to the end of the season before discussing terms over a new contract.
This comes after Alan Nixon claimed via his Patreon on 18 May that Tarkowski is looking to sign an extension and is keen to continue on Merseyside.
However, the Toffees want to ensure he is not losing his physical side which has made him such an important player in recent years.
