Leighton Baines and Phil Jagielka may have played their final games for Everton, as the Liverpool Echo understand the club have informed the duo of their futures on Merseyside.
Our veteran defensive pair are set to become free agents at the end of next month, with their respective contracts due to expire on June 30, unless they were offered new deals.
Premier League rules state that clubs must submit their retained and released list by the third Saturday of May, which passed at the weekend, ahead of its traditional publication on the first Friday of June – which will be June 7 this year.
As such, while no public announcement has yet been made, the club will have already alerted Baines and Jagielka to whether or not they have a part to play in Marco Silva’s second season at the helm.
An official announcement of either their exit or retention could come at any stage now, but the Liverpool Echo believe nothing will come until next month.
They also note that if either are to be retained, it would likely be Baines more so than Jagielka, and that the veteran left-back may have been offered a one-year extension.