In what has proven to be another disastrous season for Everton as they desperately battle to avoid Premier League relegation, The Telegraph have revealed details on which players in the squad could be facing a wage decrease if the Toffees are to succumb to the drop.

The report claims that Everton began to plan for the possibility of being relegated last summer when recruiting to strengthen their squad after last season's scare. That meant inserting relegation clauses into the contracts of new signings, meaning they could now face wage cuts, whereas longer-serving players such as Jordan Pickford, Yerry Mina and Dominic Calvert-Lewin would not have their wages slashed.

That means the likes of Amadou Onana, Dwight McNeil and James Tarkowski could all be at risk of seeing theirs cut.

Relegation from the Premier League puts a big financial strain on clubs, who lose out on television revenues and other streams of income with their commercial power weakened. The Toffees have already been referred to an independent commission over an alleged breach of profitability and sustainability rules by the Premier League, and recorded financial losses in March for a fifth successive year.