Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard is expecting the Toffees to keep hold of star players such as Kevin Mirallas and James McCarthy this summer.

Everton seem to face a fight every summer to hang onto their best players and this summer is no different as the likes of winger Mirallas, midfielder McCarthy and promising defender John Stones have been consistently linked with a move away from Goodison Park.

Despite all the reports linking the trio, Howard believes that the club will not be selling any assets as chairman Bill Kenwright and manager Roberto Martinez are adamant on not selling their best players.

Howard said: "The chairman and the manager seem very resilient in trying to keep our best players, but with the one caveat – that if they leave then they are replaced with like-for-like quality, or better. So a trend has been set."