Opinion: Goalkeeper could leave Everton this summer
Britain Football Soccer - Everton v Chelsea - Premier League - Goodison Park - 30/4/17 Everton's Maarten Stekelenburg Reuters / Phil Noble Livepic EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Maarten Stekelenburg is out of contract this summer and could be on his way out of Everton in the coming months. The 37-year-old has struggled for playing time under Marca Silva, Duncan Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti this season and doesn’t have a new deal on the table.
Stekelenburg spent most of the campaign behind Jordan Pickford and Jonas Lossl in the pecking order, but he’s been a regular on the bench since December 2019. Lossl even opted for a loan move back to Huddersfield Town in January to get first-team football.
The 31-year-old joined the Toffees on a three-year deal last summer with the goal of ousting Pickford between the sticks. But his lack of activity led to him returning to the John Smith’s Stadium for a few months. Huddersfield don’t have the means to sign Lossl permanently, however, so the Danish international will return to Goodison Park.
And with Joao Virginia available in the U23s, Ancelotti doesn’t have a need to keep Stekelenburg past this summer.
Should Everton let Maarten Stekelenburg leave this summer?
The Dutch international joined Everton from Fulham in 2016 and has gone on to make 26 appearances in all competitions, conceding 31 goals and keeping seven clean sheets. Stekelenburg’s last outing came in Everton’s EFL Cup defeat to Southampton in 2018, so he won’t be missed.
Everton will have Pickford, Lossl and Virginia at their disposal next season, so it makes sense for them to let Stekelenburg leave at the end of his contract. Lossl has impressed back at Huddersfield and has two more years on his contract, so he won’t be going anywhere. The Toffees still have high hopes for Virginia too, so he’ll likely be backup if he’s not loaned out.