The Africa Cup of Nations was a rough time for Everton.
Not only were they missing two of the club's most important players in Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gana Gueye, who helped lead Senegal to the trophy in the competition, but the period saw Everton lose Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Charly Alcaraz, Tim Iroegbunam, and Jack Grealish to various injuries.
Although Dewsbury-Hall and Alcaraz are back on the grass, the expectation is that Grealish will miss at least several weeks with a stress fracture in his foot, with the timetable probably closer to a few months for the Manchester City loanee, although nothing has been announced.
This is putting a lot of stress, pun intended, on David Moyes' squad, as the manager is working hard to figure out how to fill out a matchday team given all in the injuries.
But the good news, outside of the return of a few of the injured players (a list which also includes Jarrad Branthwaite), is that Ndiaye and Gana are also back in training after a few days of celebrating with their Senegalese teammates. The Monday night matchup at Hill Dickinson against Leeds probably means that both can feature in the match, a much needed step in the right direction for the Toffees.
Of those two, with no disrespect to Gana, who is fantastic in the middle of the park for Everton, having Ndiaye back in the attack is probably the most important return given Grealish's absence.
The midfield has often been excellent even with Gana out, as Iroegbunam, James Garner, and Merlin Rohl have all stepped up and often played well. None of them possesses Gana's ball-winning ability, but Iroegbunam in particular has shown he might have the knack for it.
But since AFCON began, Everton have managed a meager 7 goals in 7 games, two of which came in a losing effort in a 4-2 game against Brentford at home. So having one of the club's best attacking options, a player who is still the joint leader in goals with four alongside Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry, back in the mix could make a world of difference.
Alas, it won't be opposite Grealish, but Ndiaye can likely fill in on the left, leaving the right wing open, hopefully for Tyler Dibling.
As Everton look to avoid losing to Leeds twice in the campaign, having Ndiaye back at full strength will be vital to the cause on Monday on Merseyside.