Sam Allardyce's future as Everton manager is in the balance after he failed to receive public backing from Farhad Moshiri.

Allardyce did not take training at Finch Farm on Thursday – it was the first time they had been back in work since Monday’s 1-0 win over Newcastle – and instead he headed to London with Steve Walsh, the Director of Football, for a meeting with Everton’s major shareholder.

The 63-year-old called for clarity from Moshiri last week after the club sent an email survey to season ticket holders asking them to rate his suitability to lead the team. It was an incident that left Allardyce enraged.

Sam Allardyce has failed to receive public backing from Everton chief Farhad Moshiri

But Everton will not give Allardyce the public backing he wants – his position has been discussed at boardroom level – and the uncertainty has been exacerbated by the fact they will not tell him whether his services will be retained.

Moshiri appointed Allardyce last December following a disastrous start to the season. He signed an 18-month deal but has struggled to build a rapport with fans and Everton continue to be linked with Paulo Fonseca, the Shakthar Donetsk manager, and Marco Silva, the former Watford boss.

Walsh also finds his position under scrutiny after a disastrous recruitment drive in which Everton invested £239million over a 12-month period. Leicester’s former Chief Scout has been under the spotlight since Ronald Koeman was sacked last October but managed to cling to his job.

Allardyce headed to London for a meeting with Everton’s major shareholder on Thursday

Everton are unlikely to finish higher than eighth this season with sweeping change expected

Everton, who travel to Huddersfield on Saturday, finished seventh last season but are unlikely to get any higher than eighth this time around and a summer of sweeping change beckons at Goodison Park. They will need to appoint a new Chief Executive, as Robert Elstone is leaving.

Marcel Brands, PSV Eindhoven’s Sporting Director, has been lined up to come in and oversee a restructure.

He was first approached in 2016 by Everton but has indicated to PSV that the time is right for him to leave.