Gerard Deulofeu will be allowed to leave Everton this month, manager Ronald Koeman has confirmed.
Several clubs have expressed interest in the Spain international after he failed to cement a regular first-team place with the Blues under Koeman this season.
Ajax and Middlesbrough are in the hunt for Deulofeu but the player’s preferred choice remains AC Milan despite them failing to table an agreeable loan offer.
Koeman has given the out-of-favour winger his blessing to pursue playing time away from Goodison Park between now and the end of the current campaign.
He said: “I spoke to Geri and it’s a difficult situation for the player.
“If he finds a solution to go and to play and to get game time then it’s no problem.
“But the final decision is by the board of the club to accept yes or no [on an] agreement.
“I did not have any call from the chairman [saying] that they agreed something for Deulofeu.”
Deulofeu has been omitted from several Everton match day squads and, when picked, restricted to a string of substitute appearances in recent weeks.
And Koeman believes allowing the 22-year-old a short-term break from Merseyside is in the interest of both the player as well as the club itself.
“It’s always tough because you’re not really part of the team,” he added.
“You don’t get a lot of game minutes but that’s the competition that we have in the team.
“I think you have always to look first what’s best for hte club and second what is best for the player.
“In the situation of Geri, the best [for everyone] is that he gets game time somewhere.”