Everton lead Chelsea in race to sign former Real Madrid star
Published 09:01 12/11/09 By MirrorFootball
Everton are leading the chase for £13m-rated Benfica defensive midfielder Javier Garcia.
The 22-year-old Spaniard impressed Everton manager David Moyes with his performances in Benfica’s recent 5-0 and 2-0 victories against his side in the Europa League.
The Toffees may face competition from Chelsea, who will be in the hunt for a holding midfielder in January after their transfer ban was suspended last week.
But Everton is Garcia’s most likely destination, and a move to Merseyside would see him follow in the footsteps of his cousin, former Liverpool star Luis Garcia.
A product of Real Madrid’s youth system, Garcia only left the Bernabeu for Benfica in July in a £6.3m deal and is tied down to the Lisbon club until 2014.
And with rumours of a move to England gathering pace over in Portugal, Garcia’s father, who is also his agent, insists his son is happy - for now.
Garcia Sr. said: “He is very happy at Benfica. He knows it’s a phenomenal club and he’s not thinking about leaving at the moment. We have not even talked about these rumours.”
