Alex Neil pulled no punches over the scale of the job he has at Norwich City but one glance across the technical area at the Everton dugout demonstrated the Canaries are not alone in facing a massive summer.

Roberto Martinez was dismissed from his post after a lacklustre second-half to the season at Goodison Park culminated in a 3-0 defeat at Sunderland which confirmed Norwich's relegation.

Current development coach David Unsworth was in temporary charge for Norwich's visit, alongside the vastly-experienced Joe Royle, with Everton's top brass in the process of finding Martinez's permanent successor.

Neil has his own troubles to deal with as he sifts through the fall-out from City's demotion, that ended on a losing note at Everton with goals from one of his ex-Hamilton protégés, James McCarthy, Leighton Baines and Kevin Mirallas.

'Since the day we went down we have started planning and there is a lot going on in the background,' he said. 'We have to go into next season with one aim, and that is to get ourselves back in the Premier League. We fell short this year, we have to improve next year.

'You could sense with the (Everton) fans that animosity the last time I was here and none of that was there in this game. There was a lightness about them and how they went about it with Roberto going. That is the hard part of football. Players start to react and run about a bit more than in previous games.

'Everton have decided to take a different route and that happens regularly, particularly at the Premier League level. We have a board here who want to plan the future of the club and what route they deem is the right one. There is no question since I have been here there has been nothing but support.

'We have our own restraints as a club, I think we had the lowest budget in the league, and that comes with the territory. We have to get on with it and try to be the best we can be.'