Everton chief Robert Elstone admits they're disappointed having to pull the plug on a deal for FC Twente midfielder Leroy Fer.

An issue with a knee problem arose during Tuesday's medical, resulting in the Toffees returning to the Dutch side with different terms.

Everton wanted to pay the £8.6million fee in instalments dependent on certain criteria being achieved, but Twente would not accept that and as a result the deal is off.

Elstone told Sky Sports News: "(It's) very sad. We were very excited about the prospect of Leroy Fer coming to Goodison but the transfer didn't go smoothly in the end, there were issues.

"We have to put the club first. Our track record shows we do that pretty well. We thought long and hard about it and it didn't work out."