About a couple of months or so ago, we covered a report in Sport/Foot magazine in Belgium regarding Everton’s failed attempt to sign Standard Liège striker Ishak Belfodil.
As far as the Belgian press was concerned in January, the Algeria international was destined to join Ronald Koeman at Goodison Park, only to see the deal collapse at the last moment for reasons that remain officially unknown.
Some say it was the Dutch manager who pulled the plug on the deal after finding out about Belfodil’s off the pitch behaviour, while others claim agents that weren’t supposed to be in on the deal meddled where they weren’t wanted.
Christophe Henrotay, Belgium’s biggest agent, was supposedly one of these, and, in an interview with Sport/Foot, showed the magazine emails and WhatsApp conversations he had held with Standard’s chairman and Everton’s Bill Kenwright.
However, while these discussions might have taken place, Standard are certain of one thing: they never received an official offer from Everton for their star striker.
Speaking to the very same magazine this week, the Jupiler Pro League club’s president, Bruno Venanzi, said: “I challenge anyone to show that I or a member of the board received an official offer from Everton. I didn’t receive anything. Olivier Renard didn’t either. I got calls and WhatsApps from Christophe Henrotay, but he’s not the player’s agent.”
Pushed about it, he continued: “No offer on paper with Everton’s name at the top ever reached us. Either by mail or email.”
Basically, three months after, we still don’t know what exactly happened, and we fully expect more to emerge from this in the press in the near future.
