Source: Telegraph
Joleon Lescott set to leave Everton and move to Manchester City for £24m
City inquired about signing Lescott in the January transfer window and followed up that interest with two bids, worth £15 million and £18 million, during the close-season that were rejected by the Everton manager, David Moyes, who rebuffed a transfer request from the player 13 days ago. [LNB]Moyes was infuriated by City's behaviour and branded their attempts to sign Lescott as "disgusting", while the club's captain Phil Neville was also critical of their conduct. [LNB] Related ArticlesManchester City 1 Wolves 0Lescott bid hits stalemateHughes still keen on LescottMan City v Wolves previewSanta Cruz derby returnSport on televisionThe Scot was adamant Lescott would not be allowed to leave Goodison Park and the former Wolves defender played in last Saturday's 6-1 defeat at Arsenal, despite asking to be left out the day before, but was subsequently dropped from the squad for Thursday's 4-0 victory over Sigma Olomouc due to his attitude. [LNB]Moyes, whose side face Burnley at Turf Moor this afternoon, reluctantly changed his mind about the deal and has decided to sell for a fee Everton are satisfied with. But the saga will not end there, with the Merseyside club set to contact the Premier League to complain about City. [LNB]They could cite the example of Ashley Cole's bitter move from Arsenal to Chelsea in 2005 which was followed by the Stamford Bridge club being found guilty of an illegal approach, fined £300,000 and given a suspended three-point penalty. [LNB]Moyes remains bitterly disappointed about losing a player he picked up from the Championship three years ago and helped turn into an England international but, despite his earlier reluctance, he was left with little choice but to sanction Lescott's departure. [LNB]"It's been difficult because Joleon's attitude has been so poor and it's had an effect and that's why we've had to leave him out," Moyes said. "Obviously we'd rather have him playing but if a player is going to behave in the manner he did, we've had no choice but to keep him away from it. [LNB]"You could see the effect that it had last week. I think it's played a big part behind the scenes. [LNB]"Joleon had told me on the Friday when he came in that he didn't want to play but I had no options and few choices so I chose to ignore it and play him but in the end it worked against me so I've taken the decision."[LNB]Phil Jagielka is out injured until November and Moyes, having spent the summer in a fruitless search for reinforcements, may struggle to make additions. [LNB]Moyes, who pulled out of a move for Arsenal's Phillipe Senderos and has also inquired about Newcastle's Steven Taylor, will consider bidding for the Republic of Ireland international centre-back in the next few days. [LNB]The Everton manager has secured a work permit for Argentinian Ever Banega and hopes to sign the Valencia midfielder on a season-long loan deal this week. [LNB]
