It's December now, which means a very busy festive season is upon the Premier League.
Everton will play six matches in December, with three of those coming without key players Idrissa Gana Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye, who will depart to play for Senegal during the Africa Cup of Nations, likely after the trip to Stamford Bridge on December 13.
But after this month, January will bring the opening of another transfer window, which means David Moyes and his transfer committee can look for ways to improve the squad heading into the final five months of the season.
There will plenty of time during this month to dive into specific transfer links or other players that Everton can look to bring into the fold, but here, the goal is to designate which positions should be on the committee's wish list.
Given the specific nature of the January window, where prices tend to be elevated because clubs looking to add players are often very specific in their targets, it isn't likely that Everton can add players at all these positions, but it doesn't mean they shouldn't have an eye to doing the best they can.
No.5: Left back
This position is low because Everton did just spend money on a young player at the position this summer. Even though Vitalii Mykolenko is out of contract after this season, the hope would be that Adam Aznou proves he can be the long-term answer.
Exactly how he's going to do that remains to be seen, but ideally, the goal is to get Aznou into a position where he can take the job before the start of next season.
In the mean time, if a good opportunity comes along in January, Everton could strike, but it cannot be the highest priority in this particular window.
No.4: Center back
The center back depth is in a strange place for the club at the moment.
Jarrad Branthwaite, who got a renewed contract this summer, hasn't seen the pitch this year due to injury, but while the club did extend James Tarkowski's contract back in October, it isn't likely that the 33-year-old will be considered a nailed-on starter during those final few seasons.
And with Michael Keane only on a one-year deal, it's always possible that Everton look for a young fourth option for the future.
But like left back, this isn't the highest priority, and signings further up on this list can ensure that Jake O'Brien returns to the center back mix for the final few months of the year.
No.3: Striker
Yeah, okay, I know. Everton don't exactly have the most sparkling goal-scoring record this campaign, as their 14 goals are better than only Nottingham Forest, Leeds United, and Wolves, with the latter two teams currently languishing in the relegation zone.
The striking duo of Thierno Barry and Beto have contributed just one goal to that tally, although Barry nearly doubled that total in Saturday's loss to Newcastle.
Still, spending more money for a third striker seems a bit of a fools errand, especially with the current duo signed until 2027 (Beto) and 2029 (Barry). Unless there's a way to swap out the older striker (he's still just 27) for another option, simply adding another player to the mix isn't really a solution.
The better option, it seems, is for one, or both, of the current players to just start scoring. Bringing in another striker will be both expensive and not guarantee to actually fix the problem.
No.2: Defensive midfielder
Among other things, Saturday's loss showed just how badly Everton miss Idrissa Gana Gueye when he's gone. His red card suspension means he's out for Tuesday's trip to Bournemouth and Saturday's home match against Forest. He'll return for one match (away to Chelsea) before departing for AFCON.
Neither James Garner nor Tim Iroegbunam is capable of doing the defensive work that Gana does, so trying to replace the Senegal international with that pairing is a mistake akin to going into the season with only one player at that position.
Not to mention the fact that Gana just turned 36 in September and only signed a one-year deal to return to Everton this summer, and it's clear that a replacement is needed, both for the short and long term.
It's unlikely Everton can work quickly enough to fill Gana's spot for the earliest January matches (home to Brentford and Wolves on January 4 and 7), but finding a player as soon as possible should be a high priority.
No.1: Right back
Stop me if you've heard this one, but Everton need to replace Seamus Coleman at right back.
That has been the case since at least the summer of 2022, after the last season during which the Irish international played more than 30 matches in a Premier League season.
It's obvious to everyone that Jake O'Brien isn't the answer, and James Garner is a spot-starter at best. If there's major money to spend, it absolutely must be spent finding a long-term option that Moyes trusts to immediately step into the starting XI.
It doesn't mean this has to be the only move the club can make in January, but if the window ends without a right back, no matter what else the club does, will be a failure.