Everton's fullback issues are a well known element at this point, and more or less have been since a certain manager who shall not be named sold Lucas Digne to Aston Villa because he had a point to prove.
Since that point, Everton's fullbacks have been, at best, space fillers. Sure, Vitalii Mykolenko has often managed a strong defensive performance against top players, and his presence has been better than other options in that period. But on the whole, the insistence on the club not finding modern, long term options at either fullback has been problematic.
It's made all the worse because they did actually sign a player like that this summer, but 19-year-old Adam Aznou was deemed not ready for the rigors of the Premier League despite being the only natural left back on the team outside of the Ukrainian international.
And yet David Moyes opted to play two players out of their natural positions on Monday night at Elland Road: Jake O'Brien at right back, who, although he's dutifully held down the slot for months now, is not a fullback, and James Garner, who is a right-footed player square-pegged into at left back.
If Mykolenko is going to miss any further time, there has to be a better solution that will allow players to be less uncomfortable with what they're asked to do.
The answer appears to be clear: Dwight McNeil should play on the left, either as a left back or a wing back.
It's something we've seen him do before, even as recently as on Everton's tour of the United States this summer. It's likely that the Englishman isn't quick enough to do the job on a regular basis, but as a fill-in for a few matches while Everton's defenders get fit, it has to be more sound than running Garner back out there.
This would allow O'Brien to slide in next to James Tarkowski and Michael Keane in central defense, giving the big Irishman a bit more comfort in his more natural position. And Garner could even slide into the right wing back slot, a role that might fit his skillset better anyway.
A back five of Garner, O'Brien, Tarkowski, Keane, and McNeil would be solid, especially if you add Idrissa Gana Gueye in front of them to help clean up some of the midfield mess.
Sure, this does open up a few more questions, like who plays next to Gana in midfield or how the attacking quartet looks when deploying this setup. But after watching the performance from Everton against Leeds, especially in the first half, it's clear that something else needs to be done for the opening match at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday.