Everton managers have been plagued for so long with the problem of who should succeed the team's long-standing right-back Seamus Coleman, that it seems to be becoming an almost insurmountable issue.
Various options have been tried by David Moyes and his predecessors, with the latest being centre-back Jake O'Brien deployed in that position over the last season and a half.
However, although O'Brien has done reasonably well filling in, clearly it is not a long-term solution and he would obviously be much better deployed at central defence.
Coming into this summer transfer window, then, arguably Moyes' first priority was finding that replacement before the new Premier League campaign begins.
So far, though, despite a few tentative links in the media, no one has been signed, and as yet no clear favourite appears to have been identified.
The Everton boss tried another possible solution in the match at Bolton by playing with a back-three or five, using Merlin Rohl as a wing-back on the right side with Adam Aznou operating on the other flank.
It worked quite well given Rohl's excellent versatility, with the German player able to offer pace and a genuine overlapping attacking threat, which O'Brien could not.
Although a pre-season game at a Championship side is not the ultimate test, it does offer a possible alternative tactic going forward.
Moyes is not generally inclined to go with a three at the back and probably won't be looking to do so when the season proper begins.
But if the club cannot find a decent, affordable specialist right-back during the summer, then other solutions will need to be considered, once again.
There are several other solutions that could be tried in the next campaign, if that turns out to be another one in which the Blues have to make do and mend.
The other specialist right-back, Nathan Patterson, is expected to be sold this summer as he has suffered continuous injury problems, and even when fit does not seem to have impressed Moyes enough to be given a starting place.
He might, though, have to stay for another year. The issue is that if Moyes is still reluctant to use him, he will have to get creative again.
Another aspect is the departure of Idrissa Gueye. The 37-year-old midfield maestro has finally left the club after being one of the Toffees' best and most reliable servants in his two stints on Merseyside.
That departure leaves a rather big hole in midfield, with Gueye being one of the Premier League's very best ball-winning defensive midfielders. Given his importance to how the team plays, this might mean the transfer priority shifts to finding a replacement first and foremost.
Additionally, James Garner, who was the club's player-of-the-season last year, has just undergone surgery and will be absent at least until the start of the season.
Garner has filled in at right-back occasionally as well, and so if he is absent for any longer than is expected, it leaves Everton even more threadbare.
It all adds up to a complicated situation, giving the Blues' manager a headache he could have done without as the new campaign looms.
Reverting to a back three would, in theory, help resolve it, still allowing O'Brien to slide across and provide cover to Rohl or whoever is playing right wing-back.
Jarrad Branthwaite's return from his latest injury problem also gives Moyes that option, as the talented centre-back is naturally left-footed and can therefore perfectly operate in a three-man central defence.
At any rate, the circumstances provide Everton with plenty to think about for an upcoming season that must surely produce genuine visible progress and a significant improvement in their position at the end of the campaign.
Add us as a preferred source on Google