Seamus Coleman explains dilemma over Everton future as contract wait goes on

Club captain Seamus Coleman believes he has a duty to help Everton while he can and admits he'll know when it's time to quit as he mulls over a new one-year contract.

Along with fellow veteran Ashley Young, 38, Coleman has been offered fresh terms for another 12 months ahead of the final season at Goodison Park. The 35-year-old has been with the Blues since his fabled £60,000 transfer from Sligo Rovers in January 2009 but admits he put thoughts over his future on the backburner until after Sunday's final game of the Premier League campaign at Arsenal.

The Republic of Ireland international said: "As has been said by the club, I've been offered something but it's not something that I've sat down and considered deeply just yet. For me, the games are always the most-important and it was important to get these couple of games out of the way.

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"Also for myself personally, I had a few injuries, a few niggles, and I wanted to get through these few games and just to focus on them. Now it's time to sit down and think about it but I make no secret about it, I absolutely love the football club, I feel like I have got a duty to help the football club while I still feel I can so we'll see where the next couple of weeks takes us."

Coleman broke his former team-mate Tim Howard's club record for Premier League appearances this season and following the 2-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium now stands on 364, some 10 more than the retired USA international goalkeeper. Having reached 422 in all competitions for Everton, the man from Killybegs, County Donegal, is now just a dozen matches shy of eclipsing Dixie Dean and knocking the club's greatest goalscorer out of the top 10.

He said: "Listen, I'm enjoying it in terms of I love the football club and I've always said when wingers are skipping past me, I'll understand. I play against some top wingers in training as well and I still feel competitive like I'm not getting ran past five or six times a game.

"At the minute I know I'm not going to be up and down the wing and I'm not going to be playing 38 games a season but I also know the value I bring to the dressing room because I live in the city, I understand what the football club means and I can relay those messages to the players when the going gets tough.

"I absolutely idolise the football club so it was just about getting these games out of the way and we'll sit down and see what's next."

Coleman's 12 Premier League games this season matched his lowest ever total at Everton in 2017/18 (when he was recovering from a double leg break but he recognises he can have a positive impact on his team-mates whether he's in the side or not. He said: "Of course every footballer wants to be out on the pitch.

"It's been tough for me but it's been tough for all Evertonians as well. I have that duty to put my own self aside to help the greater cause and I can always find a way to influence a group or the mood in the camp whether I'm playing or not.

"That's probably been my job for most of the season as I've not played as many games as I'd have liked but let's not forget I came off the back of a very bad injury against Leicester. Whether you play or don't play, the most-important thing is the football club and getting results and I help that as much as I possibly can."

Coleman has been part of Everton sides who challenged for honours in his younger days but in over 15 years at Goodison Park, the triumph against adversity this term with the team securing their place in the division with three matches to spare despite two separate points deductions, have given him one of his proudest moments. He said: "We've done what we needed to do as a group of players, as a fanbase, as a football club and management team, everyone else can talk about the decisions and the two points deductions that have never been heard of before. I've very, very proud of the reaction of the group, the players, the club, the fans.

"Now that it's been and done you can forget how tough that period actually was. We also had a run of games where we didn't win as well.

"I'm very proud of the togetherness of everyone at this football club to keep us where we belong and we're happy about that.

"It's very important, I've been here through better times in terms of top-five, top-six, top-seven finishes and a few runs in the Europa League but the last three years haven't been that, they've been a lot tougher. But you sign up to the football club and whatever comes along, you've got to deal with it.

"The last three years have been very tough for everyone involved but the togetherness and the manager since he came in has kept this football club where it belongs. We're hoping to get into the new stadium and things will change so Evertonians can look forwards again because it's been a tough time of course and we understand that."

Coleman, who was brought to the club by David Moyes, has played for nine different managers at Everton but he believes current boss Sean Dyche deserves credit for keeping their heads above water this term in the face of all the off-the-pitch turmoil. He said:

"I think we did kick-on. If you take away the points deductions where would we be? (12th, above Bournemouth on goal difference)

"That's a massive improvement on the previous two seasons, one went down to the second last game of the season and the other the last. So there's been an improvement.

"I think the manager has to take massive credit for that with his style, his principles, his old-school mentality, which is a good thing when I say that. I mentioned last week, bringing that little bit of Everton back.

"I wouldn't say it's his way or the highway, it's not like that completely but he's a disciplinarian in a positive way and sometimes that's what we've needed. I think the improvements have been there and the manager has to be given credit for that but so should the players because they could have gone under with the pressure we've had this season."