Going into 2026, Everton looked to be on track for a solid and competitive season, one that maybe could end with European football if the team was able to secure a top-seven finish.
There was also still the slim possibility of a trophy if the Blues were able to reach the last remaining domestic final in the FA Cup.
This last week has seen Everton stumbling to a 1-1 draw at home to bottom club, Wolves, and losing two players to red cards as moments of madness (not helped, of course, by the usual questionable officiating affecting the Toffees), leaving manager David Moyes with a growing selection headache for the next few weeks.
Then the Blues fell in their first game of the FA Cup as they lost in the third round against Sunderland, eventually succumbing on penalties and failing to score a single one of their spot kicks in the shootout, despite being at home.
Suddenly, Everton are slipping down the Premier League table with a host of key players absent through injury, suspension, or participation in the Africa Cup of Nations, and are also out of the only competition left that might have conceivably resulted in a trophy at long last.
On top of all this, several of Moyes' expensive summer signings are simply failing to perform week in, week out on the pitch.
Both Tyler Dibling and Merlin Rohl have had plenty of opportunities in recent weeks and have been unable to take those chances.
Each of them had a really poor game against Sunderland yesterday, with Dibling in particular very disappointing for his paltry efforts at the Hill Dickinson Stadium and seemingly a long way off fulfilling that alleged potential.
So, where does all this leave Everton and Moyes with the second half of the season underway and the January transfer window open?
Questions may now be raised about the manager, his team selections, and tactics as the adverse results are mounting up.
Moyes has earned himself plenty of credit with Everton fans so far in his second stint because of his success in turning the team around when he succeeded Sean Dyche midway through last season.
But there are signs that some of the things that marked the end of his first period as Blues boss are resurfacing currently, including a tactical rigidity and unwillingness to change things mid-game that have sometimes hampered the team.
One other issue is the apparent or perceived reluctance to give young players enough of a chance in the first team, although ironically, the best player on the pitch against the Black Cats was young midfielder Harrison Armstrong, just recalled by Moyes from his loan at Preston.
Teenage full-back Adam Aznou, a summer signing from Bayern Munich, came on late in the Sunderland match and produced a promisingly energetic display, as well as playing a part in the lead-up to James Garner's equalising penalty in normal time.
So far, he has not had any Premier League minutes, and while a short cameo in a cup game does not mean he is necessarily ready for that level, Vitalli Mykolenko has been in very poor form recently, so perhaps there is a case for giving him a chance.
With so many players out at the moment, Moyes may have little choice but to go with a few other younger players, which might bring some unexpected benefits, creating opportunities for them to try and impress.
The other major problem that has dogged Moyes' return is, of course, the never-ending issues up front, where once again Beto and Thierno Barry failed to impress on Saturday.
Rumours have been doing the rounds that Everton are looking at strikers in this window, and it seems absolutely essential that the club does all it can to find a new forward if at all possible.
It would be very surprising to everyone if The Friedkin Group were looking at another new manager, and Moyes appears safe enough until the summer at least. And with the league so tightly contested, a few good results can radically turn things around again.
However, if results continue to slide, then, as we all know, the Premier League is a very unforgiving place, and the pressure for change may become more difficult to resist.