Sam Allardyce says he has not held talks with Farhad Moshiri over vacant Everton position

Sam Allardyce insists he has not held talks with Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri about taking the reins at Goodison Park but admitted once again that he is willing to speak with the troubled Toffees as they search for Ronald Koeman's successor.

The Merseysiders parted company with Koeman a fortnight ago and installed Under-23s boss David Unsworth as caretaker manager. The former Toffees full-back made no secret of his desire to take the job permanently, but three defeats from his four games in temporary charge means he unlikely to be afforded the opportunity, though he did oversee a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Watford on Sunday (5 November).

Everton have not exactly had a smorgasbord of potential managerial candidates to consider, with Allardyce and Burnley manager Sean Dyche seen as the frontrunners for the position. The former England boss was seen as the heavy favourite to follow Koeman after it was reported that he held talks with Moshiri over the weekend, but he has since revealed that the Iranian has not yet been in touch.

"Nothing, at the minute. I am sat at home about to go to St Andrews for a League Managers' Association masterclass up there so I will be having a couple of days with one or two of my fellow managers," Allardyce told talkSPORT.

Asked whether he had entered discussions with Everton chief Moshiri, the former West Ham United boss said: "No, I haven't. It's like everything else, if somebody comes calling, there's the opportunity to speak."

Allardyce's comments may please the Everton supporters who do not wish to see him patrolling the home dugout at Goodison Park, but they also suggest that the Toffees are no closer to appointing a new manager despite having two weeks until their next game to do so.

The Everton hierarchy did allow Unsworth to take control of the first-team for four matches in order to see if he was up to the task, but they will now likely use the international break to find a new boss ahead of what looks like a huge clash against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on 18 November.