Despite Everton having an easy option to keep January loanee Tyrique George on Merseyside (all they need to do is trigger their £25 million option), the Toffees' brass is, of course, going to make this complicated.
Look no further than the same situation with Charly Alcaraz last summer, where Everton waffled for weeks before ultimately signing the Argentine to a two-year deal.
And now, Everton are supposedly doing the same thing with George, who wants to leave Chelsea this summer to find more playing time, with plenty of other suitors watching the situation to see what Everton will do.
George, who just turned 20 in February, featured 11 times during his loan spell with Everton, starting once. He didn't score a goal, but he often showed directness and more than adequate pace, something that Everton are lacking in a side full of more lumbering players.
And he's still young, meaning there's plenty of room for growth for a young man with just 23 total Premier League appearances under his belt.
This is even more of a no-brainer for Everton than Alcaraz was at the time, even if you factor in that this deal will cost Everton twice as much as the move for the midfielder last summer. But George is younger and English, so the tax on that covers the higher fee.
Everton, of course, are also looking into bringing Jack Grealish back, and some would argue that this negates the need for George in the side.
But the fact is that injuries happen, and David Moyes needs to have players in the side that he'll actually use when that time comes. Grealish is also likely to be back on another loan, if he comes at all, allowing for George to come in and work toward becoming a regular starter in the near future.
He can also play on the right-hand side, despite what seems to happen every time he's substituted into a match, and if Moyes is going to pretend that Tyler Dibling doesn't exist, then he might as well use George there.
There shouldn't be any further thought or negociations on this one. That's what the parameters of the loan deal were for.
Everton just need to stop dragging and get this one over the line so they can focus on other needs throughout the rest of the summer, needs that will require moves for players they didn't have in the building for the last several months.
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