The 29-year-old, who is expected to win his 28th cap on Wednesday in a Wembley friendly with England, helped the Toffees clinch a UEFA Cup spot for next season via a fifth-place finish in the Barclays Premier League.

"Nobody wants to be the one to say it but I will - the way football is at the moment you need money," said Howard.

"We have had a generous chairman who has given us money. Andy Johnson broke the record, Yakubu broke the record and we have to keep doing that if we are to stay up with the teams that are spending that money.

"It's a sad truth that nobody wants to say but if you look around the world the teams who are at the top aren't the poor ones. We have a good team and a good squad so if we keep building on that we will have quality.

"If we have more depth we will be all right - we can challenge. We finished fifth this year so fourth is the next logical step."

Howard spent three years at Manchester United before joining Everton in 2006, initially on loan, and USA coach Bob Bradley is hopeful more of his players will be recruited by England's elite clubs.

He said: "It is important that we have players here and even more if we have our best players starting to play for the top four teams.

"The experience you get when you are playing in the Champions League on the big nights can certainly help us with the national team.

"That's the hope. Look at the season Tim had for Everton. He played a big role and they finished fifth and you hope they can keep moving up the ladder to the big four some day."