Everton have unfortunately been a bit of a basket case in recent years as Farhad Moshiri and Marcel Brands big plans and big spending, did not produce the results they would have wanted and whilst it has hardly been fantastic under former England midfielder Frank Lampard, the club does seem slightly more stable again and has stopped lurching from one extreme to the next.

With 12 games played in the 2022/23 Premier League campaign, we are reasonably comfortable in 12th place right now, but with three wins and four draws, there is room for further significant improvement this year – even given the disruptions we have faced, and will face with the ridiculously timed break for the World Cup out in Qatar.

We have largely stopped splurging on fancy foreign – and even home grown – names and our transfer approach now seems a touch more measured and far more focused in on bringing in the right players to make a noticeable, and immediate difference to our first team squad as opposed to the next Mr Vegas for the press headlines.

Understandably, there is still a lot more to be done in terms of getting us back on properly and on more of a sustainable upward curve again when it comes to Premier League placing, but with a good pivot back to youth under Lampard – given the successes he had there during his difficult spell with Chelsea – there is every reason for hope in the years that lie ahead.

One such player providing that hope is Academy graduate Kyle John. The 21-year-old right back has made good progress through our youth system since joining the club as a 6-year-old and as well as now being a regular in our Under 21 setup, Lampard has also recognised his ability and future development potential by drafting him into his first team squad for training this year – whilst he is still to make his official club debut (having featuring a few times for our Under 21’s in the EFL Trophy competition) he has been part of the match day squad this year for games against Southampton and Manchester United.

The logical guess is it will not take too long at all before fans get a slightly better look at him.

On Tuesday of this week, the youngster signed a new and improved deal with the club keeping him at Goodison Park until at least the summer of 2024, and he was rightly delighted with his new deal.

“I’m so proud to sign this contract for this great club. I’m looking forward to continuing to work hard and getting to where I need to be. With Frank Lampard as the manager, he likes to bring young players through, and I like the way he plays. I’ve been here for a long time and Everton means everything to me. It is like home. I’m committed to giving everything I can to give back to the Club. This season, I’d like to make my First-Team debut and get some minutes. That’s my goal.”

Director of Football, Kevin Thelwell, added: “Kyle’s progress with us from the age of six has been clear and consistent – and we’re very pleased to be able to help him continue his journey towards First-Team football.”