According to reports in the Daily Mail, Everton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin wants to leave the club this summer and could be one of the first names through the Goodison Park exit door as the Merseyside outfit look to cull their 38-man squad.

What's the word, then?

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in action with Morgan Schneiderlin

Well, new Toffees director of football Marcel Brands has admitted that they must sell before they buy over the course of the next couple of months because of their inflated squad, and the Daily Mail says that the Merseyside outfit's wage bill is close to 80% of their total turnover.

The Daily Mail says that Brands' priority will be to move players on that no longer want to play for the club, and that the 6ft 1in tall Schneiderlin – who was a West Ham United target in January – is one name on that particular list after telling them that he wants to leave.

How did Schneiderlin do during the 2017/18 season?

The Frenchman was expected to be one of Everton's key figures in their bid to gatecrash the top-six party in the Premier League, having impressed in the second-half of the previous campaign following his move from Manchester United.

However, he was a shadow of his former self as the Toffees struggled towards the wrong end of the table under Ronald Koeman, and he was even excluded by caretaker boss David Unsworth on one occasion having failed to impress in training.

The 28-year-old, who came under heavy criticism from his own supporters on Twitter for his performances, did improve slightly under Sam Allardyce in 2018, but his 18-month spell at Goodison Park now looks set to end.

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Will the France international be a great loss?

Probably not, no.

The 28-year-old didn't look interested at times last season and whether that was because he was unhappy with his own performances and the crowd reaction, it seems best for all parties if he moves on this summer to allow Marco Silva to make a fresh start with the squad he has inherited.

Schneiderlin's relationship with the supporters has certainly been strained in recent months, and they won't lose too much sleep over his departure, which could give youngsters like Tom Davies and Beni Baningime more time in the starting XI.