Five bruising days of drama have turned the attention of the footballing world to Everton as the club battles to prepare for another relegation fight.
Frank Lampard's sacking was of little surprise after a damaging run of form that left the Blues second from bottom after their second consecutive defeat to another side in the bottom three. But his departure is likely to have had some influence on the remarkable U-turn of Arnaut Danjuma, who looked set to become the club's first signing of the January transfer window but made an 11th hour switch to Tottenham Hotspur.
Director of football Kevin Thelwell is now in a race to bring in a new figurehead to rescue Everton's fortunes on the pitch. Majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri's favoured candidate, Marcelo Bielsa, is among a group of leading contenders, which includes former Burnley boss Sean Dyche. Thelwell is also tasked with the job of strengthening the new manager's squad in the final days of the month despite not yet knowing who it will be, having a limited budget, and now having to deal with the fallout from Anthony Gordon's absence from training amid interest from Newcastle United.
READ MORE: Frank Lampard breaks silence after Everton sacking
READ MORE: Marcelo Bielsa has done Farhad Moshiri a favour whether he becomes the next Everton manager or not
An extraordinary 120 hours started with the Blues' defeat at West Ham, Jarrod Bowen's double extending Lampard's winless run to 10 games. After the initial post-match flurry of intrigue, it prompted a period of calm and uncertainty on Sunday before the Everton's manager's departure descended into farce. The writing had been on the wall after the Brighton humiliation and, by the final whistle on Saturday, few had doubts over what would happen next.
Lampard emerged from the bowels of the London Stadium bereft of the defiance that had characterised his reaction to troubling defeats to Leicester City and Wolves. He did not appear as deflated as the post-Southampton press conference seven days earlier, for which he emerged to speak to reporters a full 90 minutes after his side's fourth consecutive home loss. And he remained polite and honest - as he always did.
But around him the circus was already in full flow. While journalists sat typing away their match reports and waiting for Lampard and West Ham manager David Moyes to appear, footage of Mr Moshiri and chairman Bill Kenwright began to spread on social media. Mr Moshiri was quizzed in the stadium car park over Lampard's future and his response caused confusion as he said: “I cannot comment... It’s not my decision.”
Lampard, who had received Mr Moshiri's public backing 10 days earlier, said he was unaware of those words in the interview that followed. He had not spoken to the Everton owner beforehand but had known he was in attendance for a game for the first time during his 12 month tenure.
What may have been intended as a show of support from key figures on the board, with chief executive Denise Barrett-Baxendale also in attendance, instead simply appeared ominous for Lampard - particularly when the final whistle ended a miserable performance that extended the Blues' poor form.
Mr Moshiri and Mr Kenwright left the ground together with Lampard's future on their minds while the 44-year-old forced his way through a painful press conference. His final press question as Everton manager was posed by The Athletic, Lampard declining to "shed light" on the future of Gordon, who neither started nor was brought on despite his side chasing the game for the entire second half. Moments earlier, when asked whether the Blues were finally on the brink of strengthening amid reports they were closing on a deal for Villarreal winger Danjuma, he told the ECHO: "You are only close when it is done. We are not there on anything."
The January transfer window was the best opportunity to take Everton forward, he added. Setting out his blueprint for how to improve the team going forward, he explained the size of the task that will now face his replacement as he said: "I think this game was maybe a decent example of it. Not all games are the same, but we need to try and help the squad and bring in players probably at the top end of the pitch to be competitive and to have an instinct and give us more goals because I think the league is moving forward and a lot of other teams around us are making those moves. Of course, we are working hard to make those moves - I would hate to sound like I am saying nothing has been done, it is not an easy market, our budget is very different to a lot of the other teams around us. It was last summer, it is now. So my main focus is to concentrate and work on the players that I have got - and I am absolutely not hanging anyone out to dry for losing a game at West Ham. When I say we were not clinical enough today it’s because that is my job to say it and my job to try and coach it. But we want to help the squad."
With Lampard having survived Saturday night, Sunday became a waiting game that ended without the narrative being taken any further. Talks between the board, Mr Moshiri and Thelwell are understood to have taken place but no decision - if it had been taken at that point as some agents later suggested - was communicated publicly. That the day passed without confirmation of Lampard's fate or the announcement of Danjuma as the club's first signing of the transfer window only added to the confusion and anticipation heading into Monday, although there was acceptance that co-ordinating the two announcements would pose a PR conundrum.
Monday began quietly at Everton's Finch Farm training ground and city centre offices at the Royal Liver Building. With just under a fortnight until the next match, against league leaders Arsenal at Goodison Park, the first-team squad had been given a day off, while on the Liverpool waterfront it was considered the day would be approached as though it was business as usual unless staff heard otherwise. That line held until just after 3pm - not because staff had been informed of any changes but because news of Lampard's exit was then broken in the media.
Fired by Mr Moshiri, the details were not immediately passed down the layers of staff at the club, where the initial belief was the first report had been a draft pre-written article that had been published by mistake. As more and more reporters confirmed their understanding Lampard was no longer in a job, many of the staff so vital to the club, and members of the playing squad, found out via the TV, radio and online news sites. It would be another five hours before Everton confirmed the news on official channels, a delay that prompted ridicule but was influenced by the need to finalise legal matters. Some club staff had left for home still without having been formally told.
After the dust settled overnight, Tuesday had the potential to offer the Blues a reset - on football matters at least. While most supporters and commentators acknowledged Lampard was fatally undermined by the problems he had inherited, few could argue a run of one win in 14 was acceptable. And at least Danjuma would arrive. Lampard had helped convince him to move to Merseyside on loan, setting him up as his parting gift. Except he did not come.
In the most extraordinary tale of the transfer window so far, the 25-year-old instead travelled to north London for discussions with Tottenham despite having completed a medical with Everton and many of the other formalities. His Twitter post upon signing read: "To dare is to do. Let’s get to work!" and was flooded with responses from Blues expressing their disbelief in his change of heart and arguing he would spend his time in the capital on the bench.
The drama did not halt there. The Blues then became the subject of reports Mr Moshiri had placed the club for sale and would consider offers in excess of £500m, before the businessman dismissed this claim to the ECHO on Tuesday night. The claims came against a wider backdrop of discontent and the growth of a protest movement calling for changes to how the club is run. In response to this the club had committed to engaging in with supporters and responding to their key concerns.
In a video interview with the Fan Advisory Board, recorded the previous Thursday at Mr Moshiri's north London home, but which was released shortly after the press reports the club was up for sale on Tuesday, the British-Iranian businessman reaffirmed his commitment to the club and his faith in the board of directors while setting out his investment strategy in relation to the waterfront stadium set to become Everton's new home.
Wednesday saw super-agent Kia Joorabchian become the latest character in the chaos engulfing Everton as he spoke on talkSPORT to address claims surrounding his influence. But the real drama was over at Finch Farm where Gordon had once again failed to attend training. His absence on Tuesday had been explained but on Wednesday and then Thursday the club had expected him to report for duty. His failure to do so fuelled rumours he was attempting to force a move to the North East.
While the club had been caught by surprise over Gordon's actions - particularly with training being overseen by Paul Tait and Gordon's boyhood hero Leighton Baines - the ECHO understands that, by Thursday evening, Gordon had not informed the club he did not intend to return, a claim reported elsewhere. The situation presents the Blues with a dilemma. The Kirkdale-born starlet has struggled for form since the World Cup break but remains one of the club's most promising talents and could be key to a survival fight - just like he was last season. Any deal would likely boost the new manager's spending power across a crucial conclusion to the transfer window, though.
For Thelwell, the task at hand is immense. First, he has to deal with contrasting opinions and ensure the club adopts a joined-up approach to the hunt for a new manager. Lampard was the first managerial appointment of Mr Moshiri's reign to be unanimously agreed upon by the board and owner. Bielsa, who flew into the UK on Thursday, was initially the preferred choice of Mr Moshiri - though could acquire the full backing of those involved.
The club has repeatedly insisted a cultural shift now requires the big calls to be joint decisions and that must be the case as they weigh up Bielsa, Dyche and other contenders - which according to some reports from Spain even include ex-manager Carlo Ancelotti’s son, Davide Ancelotti. Thelwell must also navigate the final days of the transfer window without input from the vacant manager's office opposite his own, while preventing the situation around Gordon becoming a distraction the club could ill-afford.
Less than a week after that defeat at West Ham started the chaos, it shows little sign of stopping after Everton supporters were forced to endure one of the wildest periods in the club's modern history. Rather than provide solutions, January has left the club with more questions than answers.
READ NEXT:
Sean Dyche could solve desperate problem if the worst happens for Everton
Farhad Moshiri 'in talks' with MSP Sports Capital as key figure spotted at Everton game
Farhad Moshiri has already overlooked the man he should make the next Everton manager
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta sends Everton plea after Frank Lampard sacking
'Watch this space!' - What the main Everton manager candidates have said about future
