Everton are refusing to give up on their pursuit of Marcelo Bielsa to replace Frank Lampard

Everton are not giving up on their plan to appoint Marcelo Bielsa as their new manager but face the prospect of paying at least £11million a year to land their No 1 target.

We revealed on Tuesday that the former Leeds boss had signalled serious reservations with regards to replacing Frank Lampard, who lost his job on Monday.

Bielsa fears the club’s current clutch of players will not be able to adapt to his trademark high-octane style – a view he has relayed to the Toffees hierarchy during talks.

Everton are refusing to give up on Marcela Bielsa despite his concerns about their squad

However, the Goodison Park club are not giving up on their attempts to land Bielsa despite the Argentine’s initial reservations.

The lines of communication between Everton and Bielsa remain open and while sources have indicated that any agreement remains difficult there is some hope that it is not completely out of reach.

The cost of appointing Bielsa and his staff could also emerge as a factor. Bielsa earned upwards of £11million a year at Leeds – but paid his own staff out of his salary.

Farhad Moshiri (bottom left) has held talks with Bielsa about the vacant position at Everton

Frank Lampard was sacked as Everton boss with the club 19th in the Premier League table

The Argentine is likely to expect a similar level of wage at Goodison Park for himself and his backroom team, which could be difficult for Everton given their well-publicised financial constraints

Whether or not Bielsa, who is unlikely to accept a shirt-term contract, is willing to waiver too much from what he earned at Elland Road is likely to be key towards any agreement with Everton.

Carlos Corberan, Sean Dyche and Sam Allardyce are among the alternatives if Bielsa cannot be persuaded.

Meanwhile, Arnaut Danjuma’s shock decision to renege on an agreement to join Everton was driven by the decision to sack Lampard.

The Toffees appeared to have won the race to sign the Villarreal forward following successful talks over the weekend – but the attacker sensationally turned his back on a switch to Everton on Monday to pursue a transfer to Tottenham.

Former Leeds manager Bielsa has a big decision to make over whether to replace Lampard

Danjuma was in Merseyside ready to train with Everton and had even completed his in-house media duties ahead of his unveiling.

His decision to walk away from the deal left Everton angry, understandably, given their desperate need for attacking reinforcements in their fight against relegation.

And it is understood that a key factor in Danjuma’s decision to abandon his initial plan to join Everton was the dismissal of Lampard.

Working for Lampard is said to have been a major attraction for Danjuma – but the Chelsea legend’s sacking played a role in the player’s decision to leave Everton in the lurch.