<h1>Everton reject £19m Manchester City bid for Lescott</h1><p><img src="http://img.skysports.com/07/08/218x298/JoleonLescottEverton_556157.jpg" alt="" /></p><p> </p><p><strong>Manchester City had no sooner completed the signing of Kolo Touré from Arsenal last night than a fresh £19 million bid for Joleon Lescott, the Everton defender, was submitted.</strong></p><div><div><div><p>Touré became City's fifth significant signing of the summer, with the £14 million deal taking the club's spending spree over the past eight weeks to almost £100 million.</p><p>The Ivory Coast defender, 28, has signed a four-year contract that will more than double his wages to £90,000 a week, although City may have their work cut out trying to lure their sixth and final target, with Everton immediately rejecting the improved offer for Lescott out of hand.</p><p>David Moyes, the Everton manager, believes that Lescott is worth about £30 million - similar to what Manchester United paid Leeds United for Rio Ferdinand in 2002 - and will not consider selling the England defender unless City get close to that valuation, although the situation may come to a head if the player decides to submit a transfer request.</p><p>Lescott is thought to be reluctant to do that, not least because of how it would be perceived by Everton's supporters, but the defender is known to want to talk to City.</p><p>Nedum Onuoha, the City defender, had been linked with Everton as part of a swap deal but he ended speculation about his future by agreeing a new five-year deal worth a basic £30,000 a week yesterday.</p><p>In some respects, City may have created a rod for their own back by starting the bidding for Lescott at £15 million. Although that sum is about three times what Everton paid Wolverhampton Wanderers for Lescott in June 2006, Moyes might point to the fact that Liverpool paid £18.5 million for an England international, Glen Johnson, who can only play at right back.</p><p>By contrast, Lescott, 26, can operate at centre half and left back, and, like Johnson, still has his best days ahead of him. Furthermore, it might cost Everton between £15 million and £20 million to find a suitable replacement and even then there would be no guarantees that Moyes could find one with a little more than a month before the transfer window closes.</p><p>Matthew Upson, the West Ham United and England defender, has been touted as a possible replacement if Lescott did leave.</p><p>Everton are thought to have become irritated by City's pursuit of Lescott, not least because they have stated publicly on several occasions that the player is not for sale. But while some will view that as a tactic intended to drive up the price, Moyes is reluctant to sell to a club Everton will be in direct competition with next season.</p><p>City's move for Touré proved far less complicated, with the defender becoming the second arrival from Arsenal, after Emmanuel Adebayor, the Togo striker.</p><p>“I am delighted to welcome Kolo to Manchester City,� Mark Hughes, the City manager, said. “It is no secret that we have been looking to strengthen our defence, and in Kolo I feel we have recruited a world-class player.</p><p>“He brings a wealth of Premier League experience from his seven seasons with Arsenal. Kolo has been a central figure in a very strong Arsenal team for many years and I have been an admirer for a long time. He is strong, quick, reads the game well and will be an influential figure in the dressing room.� Valeri Bojinov, the Bulgaria striker who has been plagued by injury since joining City from Fiorentina for £6 million two years ago, is on the verge of joining Parma on a season-long loan.</p><p>Bojinov has made only three league starts for City after being sidelined for long periods, first with a cruciate knee ligament injury, then a snapped Achilles tendon, and the arrival of Roque Santa Cruz, Carlos Tévez and Adebayor this summer has pushed him farther down the pecking order.</p></div></div></div>
