Everton 'face costly battle with Shakhtar Donetsk for Paulo Fonseca'

Shakhtar Donetsk are prepared to pay manager Paulo Fonseca £8m a year to keep him out of Everton's clutches, according to a report.

The 45-year-old has emerged as the rumoured frontrunner to succeed Sam Allardyce should the Toffees swing the axe at the end of the season.

Owner Farhad Moshiri faces a dilemma, though, as Fonseca will supposedly be offered a substantial pay rise to remain in Ukraine, which the Merseyside outfit will have to match.

Shakhtar are unwilling to let their Portuguese boss leave without a fight, with The Sun reporting that Everton may instead be forced to look elsewhere for Allardyce's replacement - former Watford head coach Marco Silva being a cheaper alternative.

Everton are ninth in the Premier League table with six games of their season left to play.