Jagielka must wait for his Everton bow

Jul 14 2007 by Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

EVERTONIANS will have to wait a little longer for their first glimpse of Phil Jagielka in a blue shirt.

The £4million summer signing from Sheffield United has not been named in the squads for either of today’s friendlies against Bury and a Northern Ireland XI.

Jagielka withdrew from the final session of the training camp in Italy and has been rested as a precaution.

The 24-year-old is now expected to make his bow in the friendly at Coca-Cola Championship side Preston North End on Wednesday evening.

Mikel Arteta, James Beattie and Leon Osman also picked up minor strains during the stay in Florence and will undergo fitness tests this morning before Alan Irvine finalises his team to take on Bury.

Skipper Phil Neville, Tony Hibbert and Alan Stubbs will also be at Gigg Lane, with young forward Lukas Jutkiewicz in line for a first appearance following his move from Swindon Town in May.

Everton manager David Moyes, meanwhile, will take a strong contingent across the Irish Sea to Coleraine for the match against the Northern Ireland XI.

Andrew Johnson, James Vaughan, Lee Carsley and Joleon Lescott are among the senior players making the journey, along with Nuno Valente and Andy

van der Meyde.

Moyes, who hit out at the “irresponsible” buying of some clubs that is making his life difficult in the transfer market, believes he will make one more major signing this summer.

“There are not an awful lot of players available in the positions that we are looking at this year and if one does become available, you will find they are trading at vastly inflated prices,” said the Everton manager. “Clubs are having to spend really big.

“Personally, I think we have made one of the best deals of the summer so far to sign a player of Phil Jagielka’s calibre for the money we paid for him. He is going to be a really valuable asset to this squad.

“I do not have a big enough pool of money at my disposal just to go and throw it about here and there. I have got the ability to make one good signing and there is also the facility in place to bring in a couple of loan deals.

“But when I make this signing, I have got to be really sure he will be an improvement on what we have got here. I want to get that main business out of the way before I starting looking at loan deals.”

Meanwhile, Tim Cahill could make an earlier-than-expected return to the Everton set-up with Australia on the brink of a surprise exit from the Asia Cup.

The Socceroos lost 3-1 to Iraq meaning they must now beat co-hosts Thailand to stand any chance of winning through to the quarter-finals.

Cahill, who scored in the 1-1 draw with Oman earlier in the week, emerged as a second-half substitute and laid on Australia’s equaliser before Iraq hit back.