Everton don't yet have their full squad back at Finch Farm for pre-season training, but there are still a lot of interesting dynamics to explore among the group.
Which young players will grab the chance to impress their manager as the wait for those involved in international football over the break goes on? Which players will attract the interest of other clubs and leave Finch Farm before the opening match of the season against Chelsea next month?
The latter point obviously brings with it questions of who will permanently leave Everton, with Frank Lampard and Kevin Thelwell looking to fend off advances for key players while also attempting to find moves for fringe players. But, it also concerns potential loans as the Blues look to use the market to get some players some game time.
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In fact, four players in particular have just returned from their respective temporary spells away from the club. across 2021/22. Their immediate futures are far from certain, and the coming weeks will bring a lot of eyes to their situations at the club.
Behind-the-scenes images from Finch Farm in recent days have shown Niels Nkounkou, Nathan Broadhead, Ellis Simms and Jean-Philippe Gbamin being put through their paces as summer preparations kick on. All were spread across the continent in the second half of last season as they sought regular first-team minutes away from Goodison Park, and it should be very interesting to note what could happen in their futures over the coming transfer window.
Let's start with Nkounkou, who has become Everton's back-up left-back on his return to the club. It was something of a shock to see him allowed on loan to Standard Liege last summer as he held the same role in the squad when Lucas Digne was ahead of him in the side - and his exit seemingly left the Blues very short in that position.
On the plus side, he certainly got the minutes under his belt in his time away from Merseyside - missing only five on the Belgian side's Jupiler Pro League matches across 2021/22. His performances at times came under question from some fans, but this is all part of the development of a young player, and realistically the chance for him to garner this many first-team minutes will no doubt be a benefit to Everton regardless.
This is not only a chance for the 21-year-old to show his qualities to Lampard for the first time, but also an opportunity to work with Ashley Cole - one of the best in his position in Premier League history. The decisions perhaps facing his near future are intriguing - does he seek more regular minutes elsewhere or is now the time for him to fight for his place at Everton?
Maybe a similar debate will be facing Simms after what was another relatively successful spell away from the club last term. Having helped push Blackpool to the play-offs in 2020/21, he moved to Hearts in January 2022 to fire them to the Scottish Cup final during his time north of the border.
Excitement has constantly followed his rise through the ranks at Finch Farm, from his free-scoring spell with the under-18s through to his almost instant comfort when stepping up to the under-23s. However, the path up to the first-team has been a bit more difficult for the striker with Salomon Rondon often being preferred last season as the back-up to Dominic Calvert-Lewin - although injuries to Simms might have been a factor in some cases.
Back in November the striker signed a new deal to keep him at Everton until June 2024, so that leaves options open. Reports suggest that Hearts and Rangers are interested in a potential permanent swoop for the 21-year-old, as well as a number of Championship clubs.
Again he's seemingly facing a decision - does he want to fight for his place as Everton's back-up striker or continue cutting his teeth elsewhere? What's clear is that prolonged periods on the bench will not help his development in the near future.
Broadhead is another who has clearly reached the level of needing first-team minutes at this stage of his career. He made a great name for himself throughout Sunderland's promotion push last season, bagging ten goals in 20 League One matches before the Black Cats confirmed their place in the play-offs.
That was including a hamstring injury which kept him out of action for a significant period of time too, which makes his performances all the more impressive. Fans of the North East side certainly took to him very well as his qualities as a central striker were fully allowed to shine through, something which might not be available to him if he were to stay on Merseyside.
The 24-year-old has one year left to run on his current deal at Goodison and his future seems up-in-the-air for now. He's a quality talent, and no doubt there will be interest in him before the end of the window.
And then, there's Gbamin. Someone who was signed as the replacement for Idrissa Gueye in the summer of 2019, but has had some of the most horrendous luck with injuries that you could have possibly imagined.
Thankfully the midfielder managed to put that firmly behind him during a loan with CSKA Moscow in the second half of last season, playing 11 matches. In fact, the only Premier Liga game he missed during his spell in Russia was due to a suspension thanks to an accumulation of yellow cards.
This is the sequence of regular game-time he's desperately longed for, but real questions still remain over whether he can translate that to the Premier League. He's the club's natural defensive midfielder, but can he hit the heights that were hoped of him when he was signed three years ago?
He's got another manager, and director of football in Kevin Thelwell, to try and impress now. Or, perhaps he feels now is the time to play his way into a move, if Everton can find the right suitor.
In one circumstance, it wouldn't be a surprise to see any of these four potentially find new homes this summer - either temporary or permanent. On the other hand there remains a chance to catch the eye of Lampard, although some may well find that easier than others.
Regardless, these futures might fly under the radar of a hectic summer, but they could be very important for the make-up of the Blues squad this season.
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