Sam Allardyce to be named Everton manager on two-and-a-half year deal on £100,000-a-week

SAM ALLARDYCE is set to answer Everton’s managerial SOS today and sign a £12MILLION mega deal.

Allardyce will fly in from a break in Dubai to take charge at Goodison, having won his battle to get a 2½-year contract worth around £100,000 a week.

Big Sam had resisted Everton’s initial interest — first revealed by SunSport last month — when the Toffees were only willing to give him a job for the rest of the season before trying for a younger, sexier name.

However, after owner Farhad Moshiri failed to land Marco Silva from Watford, the Merseysiders — without a manager since firing Ronald Koeman five weeks ago — had little option but to return to Allardyce.

The ex-England boss, 63, is unlikely to be in the home dugout against former club West Ham tonight — although he is set to be at the ground.

Allardyce had wanted a large payment for keeping the Toffees up but the club’s view is they do not pay for survival.

Everton are now likely to owe Big Sam’s former club Crystal Palace £2m in compensation.

Despite heavy investment in players over the summer the club started the campaign without a recognised proven striker.

MAT'S YER LOT Man United star set for spell on sidelines injured

Koeman paid the price when he was dumped in October following the 5-2 defeat to Arsenal which left the club in the bottom three in the Premier League.

Unsworth was appointed on a short-term basis while the club searched for a successor - but that process dragged on so long because those at the top failed to make a decision on who to go for.

Allardyce was the early choice, only for that move to flounder with majority shareholder instead floating the idea of trying to capture Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone.

They then turned their attention to Watford boss Marco Silva, the the Premier League club rejected their advances out of hand despite the offer of compensation.