The agent of the Brazilian wonderkid Caio Emerson has confirmed that Everton are in advanced talks to sign the youngster.
The Corinthians player is turning 18 in February, and as he wasn’t offered a professional contract yet, he can leave the club on the day of his birthday.
But this situation also means that he can’t sign for another club until then. So even though the English media recently claimed Everton had won the race, his representative Taciano Pimenta says it’s still not done.
“We can’t confirm it because it can’t be agreed until he turns 18,” the agent told Sport Witness.
“We have a strong team working in England and Everton are one of the names.”
There’s a legal issue going on as Corinthians registered Caio Emerson as if they had 100% of the player. But they only bought 25%, his agents own 50% and his old club Cruzeiro have 25%.
So if they don’t solve this until the birthday, it will be easier for the agents to let him go somewhere else and end the deal with the Brazilian side.
That’s why when asked about the possibilities of seeing the youngster staying at Corinthians, Pimenta doesn’t sound too confident about that: “We’re still talking. But as it’s been over eight months and it wasn’t sorted yet, we start to lose our hopes.”
It’s believed that Everton, or any other club who signs the player, will have to pay around R$1m (£250k) to Corinthians for his youth development there.
Caio Emerson’s staff expect to announce the decision before the end of February. Everton would have to make sure they secured a deal for 100% of the player’s rights to avoid third party issues.
