Everton boss Roberto Martinez says it's important to have older heads around his young tyros.

As well as investing in young talent, a number of established first-team stars have signed contract extensions with Everton over the past year, including Phil Jagielka, James McCarthy, Kevin Mirallas and Arouna Kone.

The manager told this week's AGM: “With young talent, you need to be careful to make sure you have the right balance so you get the direction you need on the pitch. That is why it was important to seal deals for senior players.

“If you look in the Premier League, the average age is 26.8 years. Our average is 26.3. We are the sixth youngest.

“You don't want to be too far towards one extreme. You need know-how combined with youth and energy."