Since Farhad Moshiri got involved in Everton in 2016, the club has seen a phalanx of managers come through the door at Goodison Park and just as quickly depart.
While they’ve ranged from Carlo Ancelotti, who this week left to join Real Madrid, to Sam Allardyce, all of them had some degree of Premier League experience to call upon. And while that trait should be an advantage to anyone taking over a club in English football’s top flight, all of those appointments have ended in tears.
So it was encouraging to read reports from the Liverpool Echo this week that Everton were not limiting their search for an Ancelotti replacement to those who have had a taste of the Premier League.
While former Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Nuno Espirito Santo and current West Ham United manager David Moyes are reportedly the early front runners, neither name has quickened pulses for those in the blue half of Merseyside.
The same can be said for other names tentatively linked like Rafael Benitez, Eddie Howe and Graham Potter.
Although Everton shouldn’t appoint someone who is a Premier League novice due to failures of those who have had the hot seat previously, with so few desirable options available to the club it feels like the right time to explore different avenues.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Ralf Rangnick has long-term admirers at Everton and is available for work having left his position as head of sport and development for Red Bull.
Paulo Fonseca is another available coach; he left Roma at the end of the campaign, with the team toiling after a strong start to the season. Other names in the betting include Christophe Galtier, Erik ten Hag and Marcelo Gallardo, who have enjoyed success in France, the Netherlands and Argentina respectively.
All of them may have question marks over them, but at the start of this crucial recruitment process, it feels important for Everton to go over all possibilities.
Porto manager, get it done.