Pienaar Nearly Ready To Earn His Spurs As Everton Move To Reassure Fans

The long-running saga which has finally taken Steven Pienaar from Everton to Tottenham Hotspur is not yet over – and already the Goodison Park faithful are being assured: “He’s replaceable.”

As predicted by this writer three months ago, Pienaar finally snubbed Chelsea for Spurs last night when Everton agreed a fee with the rising North London hopefuls rather than the ailing West London champions.

Both clubs are believed to have offered £3m for South Africa’s brightest star, who would be out of contract and available free at the end of the season.

Chelsea’s initial £3m bid was accepted by Everton on Sunday night but the club failed to agree terms with Pienaar, who was believed to be seeking £75,000 a week - a pittance next to the £130,000-plus paid to John Terry and Frank Lampard.

When Spurs upped their bid to £3m from an initial £1.5m, they were granted permission to speak to their long-term target, as predicted by me on eNews in South Africa last night.

Pienaar, 29, will now join newly-signed compatriot Bongani Khumalo, 24, at White Hart Lane during the January transfer window and will presumably be in line for a Champions League debut against AC Milan, which has always been his aim, according to agent Rob Moore.

Moore told me: “This move was never motivated by money. Steven is looking to sign that final contract with a side that can offer him regular Champions League football. Everton last managed that in 2005. I think that says it all.”

Pienaar’s transfer to Spurs had barely been agreed when Everton’s US international goalkeeper Tim Howard appeared on Sky News to reassure fans: "The gaffer David Moyes is really shrewd. He found Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill and Steven Pienaar.

"Steven has been our engine for the last couple of years. There is no hiding from that. He has been our star player.

"But my feeling, having been at this club for so long, is that we just get on with it. We don't dwell on things. There will be another. That's just the way it is here at Everton."

The hunt for Steven Pienaar is now officially ON. And it costs NOTHING.

The hunt for Steven Pienaar is now officially ON. South Africa’s leading Premier League star appears to have finally slammed the door on Everton – and is now expected to leave Goodison Park for free in June.

Pienaar himself has said little over his refusal to sign a new contract at Goodison Park, but Phil Neville has had his say – and the Everton captain rarely speaks to us journalists without a strong need to influence public thinking.

Phil – brother of Manchester United’s Gary - said: "The club wants Steven to stay here, but there is not much else we can say. It would be a massive blow to lose him.

"He is such an influential character. But it happened to Joleon Lescott a few years ago and we did not want him to move. It has happened to several other big players.

"You can say to Steven every minute of every day that we do not want him to leave but at the end of the day it is his decision.

"He's from South Africa, he's played in Ajax, then Dortmund now he's been to Everton and had the happiest days of his career I think.

“He is probably weighing up his options now."

The suggestion is Pienaar has already been offered around £65,000-a-week but turned it down last summer before a disappointing World Cup on home soil. That would have taken the 28-year-old from modest Westbury in Johannesburg up among Everton’s top earners.

But it remains a long way short of the figure of £220,000-a-week being bandied around in the debate over United’s Wayne Rooney and Manchester City’s Yaya Toure. And, unlike Pienaar, neither of those two over-paid stars have behaved impeccably in recent weeks.

Rooney, currently “injured” after prostitution allegations, has spent a week relaxing (and not limping despite his bad ankle) in Dubai while Toure nearly came to blows with City team-mate James Milner and drove home at half-time after being substituted in the recent home defeat against Arsenal.

Pienaar, who started his career at Ajax Amsterdam before moving to Borussia Dortmund, can now sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club in January – or he can wait to move FREE to a rival Premier League club at the end of the season. A frustrated David Moyes signed him in 2008 for £2m.

Injury and the debate over his future have impacted on Pienaar’s form this season but he remains one of the Premier League’s top midfielders. After the much-needed 1-0 win over Stoke, Neville insisted: “To be fair to Steven he's got that hanging over him, but he keeps playing well for us.”

Expect an approach from Tottenham’s Harry Redknapp, who has already expressed his interest and has already signed compatriot Bongani Khumalo, as well as former club Dortmund, Manchester United and Chelsea . Former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez, now at Inter Milan, is also a known admirer.

Pienaar chose to talk about racism rather than the race for his signature. An ambassador for the anti-racism campaign Kick It Out, he told the Liverpool Echo: “It happened to me when I played in Germany and Holland. The away fans would shout racist abuse but I used it as motivation to do well against the teams.

“I was determined not to let it get to me because if I had have done then they would have won.

“Kick It Out carries a very important message. The fight against racism is one that the game is winning but we must continue to fight.”

In a further bid to deflect attention away from his future, he added: “Everton has the best away support in the Premier League. When I first arrived I was amazed at how many fans we would take to the away games and that gives you confidence even before the game starts.

“I’ve played for the club all over Europe and the following we have had has been unbelievable. At Goodison as well, when the fans are right behind us and the stadium is bouncing, it really can help players raise their game.”