TYING a host of our key players to new contracts has capped a good summer for the club.

Jack Rodwell, Leighton Baines, Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta have all committed themselves to Everton, which says a lot for the direction we’re heading in.

Despite his five-year deal, I would hope the Rodwell situation will continue to be the subject of speculation, with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United linked with him.

That being the case, it will mean Rodwell is doing well for Everton.

I was surprised to see Jack Wilshere picked ahead of him to make his senior England debut this week, particularly when you saw Rodwell’s man-of-the-match performance as he captained the Under-21s the night before.

I saw an interview with Mikel Arteta this week in which he displayed his obvious affection for the club. It was interesting to hear how straightforward his contract negotiations were and how both parties were happy to keep it low key.

I also read with interest comments made by Steven Pienaar’s business manager, Rob Moore.

The inference was that Everton had acted much more quickly to get Arteta’s contract sorted out than they had on Pienaar’s.

It takes both sides to sort out these things, however, so perhaps the fact Arteta’s deal has been sorted out first is down to the player as much as it is the club.

There has to be common willing on both sides.

It is a case of meeting somewhere in the middle and reaching an agreement.

Maybe Arteta’s contract was arranged with the minimum of fuss, not because the club tried harder than they have with Pienaar, but because the player was more willing to commit his long term future to Everton.