- Forward Lewis Dobbin’s contract talks have stalled
- Thierry Small departed for Southampton in summer
Rafael Benítez has held talks with several of Everton’s brightest academy prospects to convince them to commit their long-term futures to the Goodison Park club.
Everton lost the promising left-back Thierry Small to Southampton in the summer after the 17-year-old, who became the youngest first-team player in the club’s history in January, rejected their offer of a professional contract. The club are in a similar predicament with the highly rated forward Lewis Dobbin, who is out of contract next July and free to sign a pre-contract agreement with a continental European club from 1 January.
