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BILL KENWRIGHT has revealed his search for new investment at Goodison is being hampered by time-wasters.
The Everton chairman, who was speaking at the launch of the club’s timeline last night, says he has come close to doing a deal over the past year, only to find potential buyers don’t have the cash to back up their bullish promises.
“There are many people out there who purport to have millions, even billions, who are ready to sign the cheque,” he said.
“But the minute you say ‘show us the funds’ they go missing and you don’t hear from them again.
“You can’t put a time frame on it. I’ve been saying this for four or five years. I’ve got what I thought was close four times in the last 10 months, but it was not even close enough. Not even near. There are people out there who would astonish you.
“They come to you and promise it’s going to be done. They ask for it to happen quickly so they can get the funds in quickly, and David (Moyes) can have some funds.
“But then the minute you ask to see the money you never see them again. To get to that stage each time is a lot of heartache, hard work and legal fees. It goes on and on. It’s quite extraordinary..”
Kenwright insists there is some cash for manager David Moyes to spend prior to next week’s transfer deadline but he doesn’t expect any new arrivals.
“There’s always money available, but it’s not much I have to say,” he added.
“We’ve made a few transfers and if the manager found someone he really wanted we could maybe do a bit of wheeler dealing. But I don’t think that’s top of his list at the moment. He’s really pleased with the squad that he’s got.”
The club’s majority shareholder was delighted to tie up Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill, Seamus Coleman and Jack Rodwell on long term deals this summer. And he hopes Steven Pienaar will soon follow suit and sign the contract he has offered.
“It was great signing up all those lads because that’s what we set out to do,” Kenwright said.
“We set out to keep that squad that was superb for the last six months of last season.
“Mikel was the last one to sign and it took a lot of negotiation, even though it wasn’t difficult negotiation. Tim jumped over Sydney Harbour Bridge when he signed his contract.
“We’ve got a happy squad here, players that really want to play for Everton, and I seriously hope that next time we talk, Steven Pienaar will have signed his contract and will have an extended stay here. He loves it here, we love having him here and we’d really like him to stay.”
Kenwright officially opened the timeline with Moyes before kick-off and added: “When it was verified we would be staying at Goodison for several years yet we decided to do a few things to spruce up the old girl. The timeline of some of our greatest moments was one of our first ideas. I’m very pleased we’re staying at Goodison Park, but the reality is that we can’t stay here forever.”
