Soccer-Martinez unsure if Lennon will sign permanently for Everton

May 7, 2015 9:52 AM

LONDON, May 7 (Reuters) - Everton manager Roberto Martinez is unsure whether Aaron Lennon's loan move from Tottenham Hotspur will be made permanent at the end of the season despite the winger having made a "phenomenal impact" at Goodison Park.

The 28-year-old, whose loan began in January, has played an instrumental role in Everton's end-of-season resurgence, scoring twice in 12 appearances and becoming a favourite with the fans for his skill and speed on the wing.

"We haven't had any sort of conversations with Spurs," Martinez told a news conference on Thursday, when asked about Lennon's future.

"He's had a phenomenal impact in our team and has a really good chemistry with our fans.

"He's been a revelation since he arrived at our club. He has set high standards, enjoyed his football and made a massive contribution.

"We don't want him to finish his period at the club without a good performance and then at the end of the season we will sit down and see what Aaron wants."

Everton have two home matches left, starting with the visit of 18th-placed Sunderland on Saturday, but Lennon will be ineligible against parent club Tottenham on the final day of the season at Goodison.

Eleventh-placed Everton are hoping to recover from last weekend's 3-2 defeat by Aston Villa as they attempt to close the three-point gap on Stoke City and West Ham United, who are ninth and 10th respectively, and aim for a top 10 finish.

"It looked like it would be out of our reach. Seven games ago we had 28 points and it was a completely different picture to where we are now," Martinez said.

"Finishing in the top 10 is not something we take for granted when you look at the quality of the competition in the Premier League.

"It would be a very important way of finishing the season." (Reporting By Michael Hann; Editing by Ian Chadband)

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