Rafael Benitez's sacking at Everton has once again left the club scouring the market for a new boss, with former manager Roberto Martinez and ex-star Wayne Rooney in the frame.
Duncan Ferguson is once again on standby to resume his role as Everton caretaker boss after Spaniard Benitez became the fifth man to be dismissed by majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri.
But whoever comes in at Goodison Park faces the monumental challenge of reviving a squad that has won just once in the Premier League since September and that sits six points above the relegation zone.
Rafael Benitez's sacking has once again left Everton scouring the market for a new boss
The Spaniard became the fifth man to be dismissed by majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri
Reports suggest the Toffees' squad value sits somewhere between £350million-£400m mark, way above the figure you would expect for a side that sits 16th in the top-flight table.
So with Benitez having lost his job, plenty of scrutiny will now turn to the squad that has underwhelmed by some distance so far this season, with many players seemingly facing bleak futures.
But after their shocking run of results, who should be allowed to be part of the new manager's plans, and who should not? And who still needs time to convince? Sportsmail runs through the Toffees squad....
Jordan Pickford - KEEPOne of the rocks the new boss should be able to build upon given his development at the club in the last couple of seasons.
The 27-year-old has only kept three clean sheets so far this season, but most would agree that blame should be laid at the door of the defence rather than his.
England's No 1 had an outstanding Euro 2020 and currently leads the way to being first choice in Qatar too, and with a heavy rebuilding job necessary, the manager will need players of Pickford's experience to rely upon as a form of stability.
Jordan Pickford is one of the few players the new boss will be able to build around
Out in the cold under Rafael Benitez, it is very difficult to see how the academy product turns his fortunes around at Goodison Park.
The Spaniard was not the first manager to disapprove of the 24-year-old, who has made just three Premier League appearances this term and six across all competitions.
He was not fancied much by Carlo Ancelotti and was therefore shipped out for a disappointing loan spell at Celtic for the second half of last season. His situation is now further complicated by the arrival of Nathan Patterson from Rangers earlier this month.
Kenny said last month: 'If this [playing time] is not possible at a certain point in time at the home club, then as a professional footballer you have to be ready to take a different path for your development, in order to do what you love again: to be on the field.'
Perhaps that time has already come.
Jonjoe Kenny has failed to impress and now faces increased competition following Nathan Patterson's arrival
Mason Holgate's appeared to emerge as a bright spark in Everton's defence in the season before last.
However, slowly but surely the 25-year-old has come to lose his place in the XI, and has not managed to take the 10 opportunities handed to him this season to prove himself amid a number of defensive injuries.
His red card against Tottenham in November was a particular nadir, with many fans slamming him for being a 'liability' following dangerous foul play on Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
Burnley are reportedly interested in signing him, and should that opportunity arise the Toffees would be well-advised to move him on.
Mason Holgate has not taken the chances handed to him this season to prove himself
Keane scored an own goal at Norwich which helped bring about Everton's tenth defeat of the campaign so far, and which demonstrated just the latest loss of concentration.
Toffees fans for years have been concerned with the 29-year-old's ability to put a series of good performances together, and are always wondering when the next mistake is coming when he is playing well.
He has also been at fault for plenty of goals, including Brighton's second goal in their 3-2 win at Goodison Park earlier this month, having lost Dan Burn from a corner, and Yerry Mina will now surely take his place now that he is fit again.
Keane his lack of pace and bad-decision making has not helped matters, with former Blackburn team-mate Paul Robinson slamming him for 'making too many mistakes', claiming he needs to show more leadership at Everton.
He will be 30 in 12 months' time, an age when many defenders have established a stability to their play. Barring a miracle, that will not arrive for Keane and the club must therefore look for a calmer experienced head or a hungrier young option.
Michael Keane's inconsistency at centre-back has been a concern among the fanbase for years
One of the better signings Everton have made under Moshiri, the 31-year-old Brazilian has emerged as an important member of the squad, and should continue to be so.
He established an excellent midfield partnership with Abdoulaye Doucoure after they both joined ahead of the 2020-21 season, but the duo's respective unavailability at various points has ruined any chances of it being a regular occurrence this season.
A well-liked member of the squad who is appreciated for his selfless style of play, the Toffees need to keep hold of the players who contributed to their top-half finish last season.
He certainly was one, and perhaps the addition of a defensive midfielder could even take his game to another level. Whether he will stick around much longer, amid reported interest from Maurizio Sarri's Lazio, is another matter.
Allan is a well-liked member of the squad who is appreciated for his selfless style of play
Separate knee and calf injuries have kept the Brazil international away from the action for longer than Everton would have hoped, to devastating effect.
Yet despite his injury problems, he has still managed to score a sixth of the club's goals in the Premier League this season, and scored his 50th goal in English football to cap a stunning individual performance against Arsenal.
A star of Brazilian football who will hope to play some part for his country at the 2022 World Cup, there will be no lack of motivation on his part to try and propel his club back up the table.
His superb overhead kick against Norwich means he should now come back into the starting XI again after overcoming his latest injury, and demonstrate how a player who has already contributed so much to them is primed to develop further.
Richarlison is a key member of the attack who can help drive the club back up the table
The midfielder has continued to struggle with injuries at Goodison Park and only when push came to shove amid an injury crisis was he given a few games under Benitez.
Undoubtedly a player with experience on his side but one who has only managed to play 30 matches in the Premier League for the Merseyside outfit since joining from Manchester City in 2019.
Benitez also went public to confirm he was ready to sell the 20-cap England international in the summer, and given that he is out of contract at Goodison Park in June, that stance is unlikely to have changed despite the Spaniard's departure, with this month's window the club's last chance to recoup some money for him.
Fabian Delph has struggled with injuries at Everton and can leave on a free in the summer
The jewel in the crown as it were, how different would Everton's season have been so far had their star striker not missed 16 Premier League games with a fractured toe?
The answer to that we will never know, but his return of 16 league goals in 33 games would suggest the picture would be at worst a little less bleak.
The England international remains one of his country's best strikers and has the athleticism and strength to match his prowess in front of goal both in the air and on the floor.
Everton's new boss will undoubtedly look to build a team around him, but given their likely finish in the bottom half of the table, will the club be able to resist big offers that could arrive for him from the likes of Arsenal this summer?
Dominic Calvert-Lewin has missed a lot of the season but remains the jewel in the crown
Only signed in the summer from Bayer Leverkusen for £1.7m, the speedy winger was the only player recruited in the previous transfer window who commanded a fee.
His early form however suggested they had struck a bargain with the Bundesliga outfit, netting three goals in his opening four Premier League games.
However he has scored just twice since then, albeit in huge home games in the Merseyside derby and against Arsenal, but he still represents one of their better-performing players this season and someone who has not been helped by those around him
He is perhaps one of the players who can kick on first under the guidance of Ferguson and then the next permanent boss, to allow him to find the sort of goalscoring form that saw him dazzle the crowds very early on in 2021-22.
Demarai Gray represents one of their better-performing players following his summer arrival
Much like Calvert-Lewin, the question will always remain as to how different Everton's fortunes would be had the Colombian been fit for the majority of this season.
Mina has played just 31 minutes of football since early October as his comeback game after a calf problem ended with a first-half substitution last month.
The Toffees have missed his commanding presence and leadership in his absence at the back, but following his return against Norwich he can hopefully now stay injury free and help shore up a leaky defence.
The former Barcelona man however is likely to fall into a similar category as Calvert-Lewin in the summer as a player who the club would hope to keep but will no doubt attract attention from clubs competing in Europe, with AC Milan reportedly interested.
The club have missed Yerry Mina's commanding presence and leadership in his absence
The winger may not have age on his side but he remains one of Everton's most effective attacking options.
A joy to watch when
