Without the services of Richarlison for the last three games amongst a raft of other absences, Everton’s good start to the season has ground to a halt.
Three losses on the bounce has seen the Toffees fall from top spot down to seventh and they head into this international break in a lot worse shape than last month’s.
Their lack of strength in depth was something highlighted by Wayne Rooney though, according to The Athletic, things could have been different.
They claim that the initial plan was to keep Moise Kean as a back-up this season and the Italian certainly started along those lines.
During the last first two games of the season, the former Juventus prodigy was introduced as a late substitute before a loan move to Paris Saint-Germain in the dying embers of the transfer window.
According to the article, Kean began to push for an exit as he started to get fewer minutes under Carlo Ancelotti amid the stunning early season form of Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
While it does also suggest those behind the scenes weren’t overly concerned about finding a replacement and believe they can manage until January, the fact he wasn’t actually loaned out until the day before the window shut does at least suggest it was far from ideal.
Particularly concerned or not, losing another squad option just hours before the close of the window doesn’t exactly speak to a well thought-out strategy.
Since moving to the French capital, Kean has scored three goals in Ligue 1 and twice in the Champions League, so certainly looks to be a useful option off the bench.
Goals aren’t a huge problem for Ancelotti’s side but perhaps having another forward of such quality would at least afford him the chance to deploy a two-striker formation in light of Richarlison’s absence rather than turning to the previously frozen out Cenk Tosun.
If Everton can get back to full strength when the Premier League returns, things could look promising again. If not, their lack of options may well come back to bite them even more.