Benitez looking to offload Pickford for  £30million

Rafael Benitez is reportedly willing to let Jordan Pickford leave in January for to sign new players, with Tottenham to look to the Everton and England goalkeeper.

The Toffees are just five points above the relegation zone after a miserable 4-1 Merseyside derby defeat to Liverpool in the middle of the week that left them without a win in eight.

Pickford also has £100,000 a week, but Spurs believe they are more likely to meet his wage demands than Everton’s transfer fee valuation.

The 27-year-old arrived at Goodison Park in 2017 for £25million, rising to £30million in add-ons from boys’ club Sunderland and he has since made an impressive 175 club appearances across all competitions, keeping 54 clean sheets in that time.

While his form has been patchy at times since moving to Everton, the finger of blame cannot be pointed at Pickford this season, with defensive weaknesses meaning Benitez’s men have scored 16 goals in their last seven games.

Under Farhad Moshiri, the club have spent more than Real Madrid and Bayern Munich since taking over the businessman in 2016, but have been extremely frugal in the most recent transfer window, with Demarai Gray being the only player they paid money for when he switched from Bayer Leverkusen. for £1.7 million.

READ ALSOEverton owner backs under-fire Benitez despite struggles

Moshiri has backed Benitez as the Spaniard pointed to the improvements Mikel Arteta has made at Arsenal to set an example of a club reaping the benefits of staying loyal to their manager after a furious protest from fans calling on the board to be sacked as they planned a strike at home to Arsenal on Monday night.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin faces a battle to play for Christmas as he continues to recover from a broken toe and quadriceps, with the 24-year-old suffering two ‘re-injuries’ during his recovery, according to Benitez.