Tottenham and Arsenal target Ross Barkley

Ross Barkley is being linked with a summer move to north London clubs Arsenal and Tottenham

Tottenham and Arsenal are set to fight it out this summer for Everton playmaker Ross Barkley, according to the Daily Star.

The reports suggest that both north London clubs would be willing to pay £30million for the highly rated England star this summer.

Barkley will have just one year left on his contract in the summer. Everton boss Ronald Koeman has recently stated that negotiations are expected over a new deal in the near future.

The Toffees are cutting it fine, though, as their Premier League rivals are circling.

Could quit for Champions League football

There are rumours doing the rounds that Barkley is keen to quit his boyhood club to play Champions League football next season. That sounds familiar! It would be hard to stomach for Toffees fans to lose Barkley in the summer, as he is one of their own.

The 23-year-old came through the youth team at Everton. He is considered the club’s best youth product since Wayne Rooney. In truth, there has been no indication what the playmaker will do in the summer.

However, the national press seem to like selling Everton players to the so-called ‘bigger clubs’. This could just be rumours or a ploy from his representatives to get Barkley a bigger contract at Everton.

Is finally fulfilling his potential

Ross Barkley has always been a bit of an enigma. At times he looks like he can beat a whole team on his own, while at other times he runs around like a headless chicken, making poor decision after poor decision.

Current Everton boss Ronald Koeman has brought more of the world-beater out of Barkley than the headless chicken. Barkley is a lad who seems to lack confidence, but when he is playing with confidence he can be a joy to watch.

His balance and his ability to go past players are rare qualities, well in English players they are anyway. The playmaker’s good run of form has coincided with Everton’s resurgence and late challenge for a top six place, which they are odds of 5/1 to achieve.

Suddenly he is playing with confidence and making the right passes. He is doing the simple things right. Barkley is starting to look more worthy of all those Paul Gascoigne comparisons earlier in his career.

The Wavertree-born star is by no means the finished article, yet. However, he is producing the goods on a far more consistent basis for Everton and much credit needs to go to Koeman.

Would he be better off at Everton?

It seems that Barkley may well be better served staying at Everton. For all the criticism he receives, he is loved by the fans because he is regarded as the fan on the pitch. Barkley is the lifelong fan that is fulfilling his dreams by pulling on the famous royal blue jersey.

There are also cons to moving to both Arsenal and Tottenham. At the moment Arsenal are struggling to make the top-four and are ahead of Everton only on goal difference. There is also uncertainty about the future of Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.

The signing may make sense to the north London club. Both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are being heavily linked with an exit from the club in the summer, as they are in the same contract situation as Barkley himself.

A move to Tottenham also has its cons. Spurs are going places under Argentinian boss Mauricio Pochettino and have a promising young team. One of those talented youngsters at White Hart Lane is England midfielder Dele Alli.

A combination of Alli and Barkley in the midfield may sound like a dream. However, for me, they would likely want to occupy the same space. Arguably both players are number tens but have thrived in more free roles in recent months.

I believe this could be a similar problem to the one that England had with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. They may well both be good players, but maybe they would not thrive in the same team.

Ross Barkley has a big dilemma ahead of him this summer. Unlike striker Romelu Lukaku, he has strong emotional ties to the club. However, just like Everton’s former youth product Wayne Rooney, he may choose with his head rather than his heart.

The playmaker will know that his decision this summer could well shape the rest of his career. For his sake, I just hope he makes the right one.

Will Ross Barkley be playing for Everton next season?