Everton boss Roberto Martinez: No deal in place for Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley

Everton do not have a deal in place to sign Tom Cleverley when his Manchester United contract expires this summer, according to Toffees manager Roberto Martinez.

Martinez tried to sign Cleverley in the summer of 2014 but the 25-year-old eventually signed for Aston Villa on a season-long loan deal.

The midfielder will become a free agent at the end of the season and reports have strongly suggested he has already agreed to a move to Goodison Park but the Everton boss insists that is not the case.

"No, that is not true," Martinez told a press conference. "Tom is a player I know really well. We know the positions that we need to strengthen in the summer.

"We've worked really hard since January to identify those targets but a lot of decisions will depend on how we perform in the last seven games. It is going to be a very important end of season for us in order us to allow to make the right decisions in the summer."

During the 2014 summer transfer window, Everton broke their transfer record to bring Romelu Lukaku to the club, in addition to luring Samuel Eto'o and Gareth Barry to Merseyside on free transfers using the club's offer of European football to entice new players.

But Everton have suffered a dismal reversal of fortunes in the 2014-15 season and while they are no longer fearing the threat of relegation, the best they can likely hope for is a mid-table finish.

Despite their step backwards, Martinez remains positive the club can still attract a respectable calibre of player to the club this summer.

"Within football, losing or winning doesn't affect players; it is how you lose and I think every player who's faced Everton this season will have come out with a real respect and a real appreciation of the way we play as a club.

"We don't rely on 10 months of results, we've got a picture of what we're trying to achieve and what we've got in the squad, particularly in terms of the younger players who have been given incredible roles.

"I think the perception of Everton has improved in the last 12 months. What we achieved in Europe has allowed that to happen. I see reports in Spain, France and other countries and the perception of us has improved in Europe."