Baines, Benteke and Fabregas make a lucrative treble
Published:Transfer gossip will be responsible for the majority of the football news between now and the start of next season in August, but there are three players that look especially likely to remain with their current employers for the 2013/14 campaign.
And punters opting to back Leighton Baines, Christian Benteke and Cesc Fabregas to stay with Everton, Aston Villa and Barcelona respectively may want to consider a price of 7/2 that they all stay put.
Baines is 4/6 to still be an Everton player after September 1st and he has been linked mainly with a David Moyes reunion at Manchester United.
There is the opinion in some parts that Moyes has such a strong relationship with Everton chairman Bill Kenwright that the Scot would not raid his former squad for new recruits at Old Trafford, at least for one season.
Everton are also keen to offer Baines a new contract to show his excessive worth to the club and the full-back was the top-rated Englishman on the list of the top 50 players in Europe this season based on performance statistics from Bloomberg.
Aston Villa are another that are under pressure to retain one of their biggest assets, with Liverpool and Tottenham heading the shortlist of clubs thought to be interested in luring Christian Benteke.
Benteke is 11/10 to stay at Villa for at least one more season though and this would surely provide his best chance of retaining the lead striking role from the likes of Romelu Lukaku for Belgium at next summer’s World Cup.
Villa have also been linked with Danish striker Niklas Helenius, who looks to have similar attributes to Benteke and could well prove the targeted long-term successor.
It looks a given that Benteke will leave after the World Cup, but Villa seem well-equipped to retain him for one more season.
Cesc Fabregas makes up the trio and although he has not flourished in the manner he would have hoped since signing for Barcelona, he has still collected five trophies at the Nou Camp.
He is a Barca boy and even if the arrival of Neymar may limit Fabregas’ appearances in an attacking role that has become fairly common, more midfield opportunities could lie in wait, especially if Thiago Alcantara joins Man Utd.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
