Tony Pulis urges Jonny Evans to sign new West Brom contract

Chairman John Williams opened discussions with the Northern Irishman at the end of last season, and it’s believed Albion have tabled a £100,000-a-week deal.

But Evans, who interested Manchester City, Arsenal and Leicester during the transfer window, has not yet agreed to sign.

The 29-year-old still has two years left on the contract he signed when he joined from Manchester United for £6m.

But Albion are keen to give their influential skipper a pay rise and a longer deal.

“I think everybody at the football club would like to see him tied down,” said Pulis. “It will be interesting to see what Jonny wants to do.”

Evans was on international duty in San Marino on deadline day, and was planning to clear the air with Williams and Pulis this week.

But Albion’s head coach admitted the meeting had been postponed until next week because of the ‘chaotic’ preparation schedule during the international break.

“No we didn’t,” responded Pulis, when asked if he and the chairman met with Evans. “It’s been chaos, this fortnight. Next week will be a week where we can sit down and talk about what we want to do.”

Albion rejected an £18m bid from City and a £23m bid from Leicester during the window, while the Gunners were also interested.

Evans was reportedly keen to join City, and while the Baggies board didn’t want to stand in his way, they refused to sell for anything under £30m.

“There was two big clubs in for him but you need to get to a deal that suits everybody and that never happened,” said Pulis, who dismissed the suggestion his defender had a medical at City while training there with Northern Ireland as ‘nonsense’.

“The bottom line with Jonny is, Arsenal and Man City were interested, they just never met the valuation the football club wanted.

"If they’d have met the valuation it might have been a different situation. I’m pleased that Jonny stayed.”

Two years ago, Saido Berahino didn’t get the move to Tottenham he wanted, and his Baggies career never recovered.

But Pulis is confident there will be no such problems with Evans – because he’s already tasted football at the top-end of the league.

“Jonny’s been at a big club, he wasn’t overawed by the fact big clubs wanted him and it didn’t affect him at all,” said Pulis. “That experience of being at Manchester United most probably helped him.

“He’s a very down to Earth lad. He’s very level-headed. He’s been at one of the great clubs in world football for a long time so going to Man City or going to Arsenal would not have fazed him at all. And I don’t think the speculation fazed him.”

And while Pulis refused to comment on speculation clubs would return for Evans in January – the new contract offer is a reward for the progress he’s made in the Midlands.

“Jonny’s done fantastic at this football club,” said Pulis. “I think Jonny has really bought in to what we try and do, the way we try and play.

“He’s blossomed with it, he’s become a better player without a shadow of a doubt. We hope the players we’ve brought in (this window) will do the same.”