According to the Liverpool Echo, Cuco Martina will join Oumar Niassse in heading ‘through the exit door’ as his contract is up this summer. The 30-year-old hasn’t made an appearance for Everton since March 2018 and has been frozen out of the first-team this season. Niasse could be a free agent in the coming months, but the 29-year-old won’t be alone.
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Martina joined the Toffees from Southampton in 2017 and has gone on to make 28 appearances in all competitions. He fell down the pecking order in the second half of his debut season, and was loaned out the following campaign.
As per Transfermarkt, the Curacao international made 18 appearances for Stoke City (August 17, 2018 – January 30, 2019), and 12 appearances for Feyenoord (January 31, 2019 – June 30, 2019), but neither club were interested in turning Martina’s loan move permanent.
Seamus Coleman and Djibril Sidibe are ahead of the 30-year-old in the pecking order, while Jonjoe Kenny has impressed on loan at Schalke 04 and will be in contention of earning a starting place at right-back next season. Martina hasn’t featured in Everton’s first-team for two years, so it’s unlikely his contract will be extended.
He made the matchday squad on two occasions this season, both times in December. The defender was an unused substitute in Everton’s EFL Cup defeat to Leicester City and an unused substitute their 1-1 draw with Manchester United. That was all supporters saw of Martina.
The Blues were hoping to cash in on his signature while the January transfer window was open, but nothing came of the reported interest. Everton will incur a £5.5m loss on Martina (free transfer + £1.82m-a-year/£35k-per-week salary) when he leaves on a free transfer this summer, but they’ll at least have him off the wage bill.