Everton trio leave as Coleman, Davies get new deals

Yerry Mina, Andros Townsend and Asmir Begovic will leave Everton after their contracts expire this month while Seamus Coleman and Tom Davies have been offered new deals, the Premier League club said on Friday.

Everton, who managed to preserve their Premier League status on the final day of the season, also activated the option to extend midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure’s contract until the end of June 2024.

Mina has been a bit of a cult hero at Everton since his move from Barcelona in 2018 but the Colombia international was restricted to just seven league games this season due to injuries.

However, he scored a crucial 99th-minute equaliser in their penultimate game of the season against Wolverhampton Wanderers as they battled to avoid relegation.

“It has been an honour to have belonged to Everton and wherever I go I will be cheering for sure. You are in my heart. Farewell Everton,” Mina had written in a farewell post on social media after their final game.

Everton said backup keeper Begovic rejected a new deal offered by the Merseyside club, with the Bosnian penning his own farewell message to the fans earlier this week.

“We wish all of them the best with the next chapters in their careers,” Everton director of football Kevin Thelwell said in a statement.

“We have also offered new contracts to players and we will continue talking with them as we look to build a competitive squad for (manager) Sean Dyche and his staff for the new season.”

Coleman, whose contract was also expiring this month, saw his season end early in May after a knee injury in a draw with Leicester City which required the 34-year-old to be taken off on a stretcher.

Dyche said later that Coleman, who has been with the club since 2009, had an operation on the knee and would be fit for next season.