Ashley Williams to Everton: Swansea skipper set for Goodison in ‘next 48 hours’ as Ronald Koeman closes on John Stones replacement
Toffees to complete £10million move for Wales defender as England starlet Stones edges closer to Manchester City switch
ASHLEY WILLIAMS will join Everton in the next 48 hours.
The Swansea captain is top of Ronald Koeman’s list of potential replacements for Manchester City-bound John Stones.
The Toffees are believed to holding out for a whopping £50m for England international Stones.
City have yet to budge from their £40m valuation but, with boss Pep Guardiola desperate to land the starlet, a deal is believed to be inevitable.
Koeman wants to land someone in his place before the start of the season and launched a £10million bid for Williams over the weekend.
And, according to , that deal is now almost done.
Swansea have repelled serious interest from the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal for Williams in recent seasons.
But it is understood chairman Huw Jenkins was willing to cash in on the skipper for an eight-figure sum as he only has two years remaining on his Liberty Stadium contract.
Williams, 31, has made over 350 appearances for the Swans since joining from Stockport for just £300k in 2008.
He was part of a side which earned promotion to the Premier League in 2011 and won the League Cup two years later.
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Earlier this summer, he skippered Wales on their incredible run to the semi-finals of Euro 2016.
Williams will become Everton’s first high-profile signing since Iranian billionaire Farhad Moshiri bought the club earlier this year.
Swansea team-mate Gylfi Sigurdsson turned down a £25m move to Goodison last month – but Williams has been tempted to jump ship and join Koeman’s Goodison project.
The new boss has already signed keeper Maarten Stekelenburg this summer, but it believed to be close to sealing a loan move for Arsenal stopper Wojciech Szczesny.
Swans supporters will be left reeling by the loss of Williams and boss Francesco Guidolin will have to move quickly to secure a replacement before their Prem opener at Burnley next week.
He has already been criticised after missing out on a return for midfielder Joe Allen, who instead joined Stoke from Liverpool in a £13m move last week.
West Ham are also eyeing a £16m swoop for star striker Andre Ayew.