There are lot of smiling punters in the Football Transfer Tavern this evening, mostly from delighted Everton fans who have heard some positive news about one of their star players.

The Mirror‘s David Maddock is in the bar to claim that Everton manager Roberto Martinez has confirmed that Ross Barkley will not be sold in January, even if the offer eclipsed the £86 million that took Gareth Bale to Real Madrid.

The 20-year-old England international has been in sensational form for the Toffees this term, with his superb free kick to hand Martinez’s side the victory against Swansea City on Saturday a clear demonstration of his fine talents.

He has even won such praise in the tavern to be compared to England legend Paul Gascoigne in the past few weeks with a place in Roy Hodgson’s World Cup squad looking a possibility.

But his emergence as one of the most promising young players in the Premier League has won prospective suitors with a host of sides – namely Manchester United and Chelsea – reportedly keeping tabs on the boyhood Everton fan.

Martinez, however, isn’t interested in the speculation regarding Barkley and has told interested parties that they shoudn’t waste their time with a possible bid as he wouldn’t be sold even in reciept of a bid in Bale’s world-record price bracket.

Martínez said: “Ross is in a moment of his career where first, he knows that he needs to carry on developing and this is the perfect place to do that.

“Second, he is a mad Evertonian and enjoying every single second. And third, we are in the middle of a season where we would never, ever consider disrupting what we have got in our squad now.

“It is not the right time for the player or the club to consider anything. Even if we got a Gareth Bale-size valuation we would never even consider it in January.”

As one punter quips, Everton said the same about Wayne Rooney after his breakthrough at Goodison Park before he sold to Manchester United for £27 million in 2004. Martinez even admits that every player has his price, he states that the Toffees are in a stronger financial position that nine years previous.

He added: “What you need to understand is that you cannot fight against the trend of the modern game. You saw it with Gareth Bale, with Cristiano Ronaldo; that is the nature of the modern game.

“What is very important is that if anything happens, it is our club that dictates how and when. If we had a financial problem or were facing a financial disaster then we would not be in control of those aspects and I would be telling you: ‘Look, we are in the lap of the Gods.’

“We are not in that situation at all.

“We are probably in the strongest financial position we have been for a long time. All we are going to make is football decisions. If we were going to lose a player it would be to end up with three or four replacements and in a stronger position. That is always the case.

“Ross is an icon for us. He represents everything we are trying to do this season, so even if a stupid offer arrived in January it would never affect us. It is important for us as a football club to show we are making the right football decisions.”