Everton boss Roberto Martinez has spoken of his desire to sign Manchester City midfielder Gareth Barry on a permanent basis.
Barry arrived at Goodison Park on a season-long deal soon after Martinez took charge and he has gone on to be a revelation as Everton have made their way to sixth place in the Premier League.
The former Aston Villa star is due to fall out of contract at the Etihad Stadium in the summer but he is unlikely to be offered a new one as City have a squad of top talent and he is likely to slip even further down the pecking order.
Barry will not be short of offers at the end of the season but Martinez is confident he will choose to stay on Merseyside.
“Gareth knows that he can stay at Everton as long as he wants to,” the Everton manager said.
“He is a unique footballer. When he came here, I wanted him to be very important for Everton, to enjoy his football.”
Martinez also believes the 32-year-old has played himself right back into contention for a place in Roy Hodgson’s England squad that travels to Brazil for the World Cup in the summer.
“He is enjoying his football. He is an incredible leader,” the Spaniard added. “All I want is for him to keep doing this until the end of the season and then, in my eyes, he should be helping England in the World Cup.”
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