While Everton will be firmly fixed on steering away from relegation danger in the Premier League and returning to prominence after a tumultuous few years, manager Sean Dyche would also be wise to keep the faith with the club's prestigious Finch Farm academy.
The outfit has brought through numerous high-profile talents over the years, notably Wayne Rooney, who burst onto the scene as a prodigious teenager and earned a £27m transfer to Manchester United in 2004.
More recently, the likes of Anthony Gordon and Ross Barkley have risen through the youth ranks on the blue half of Merseyside, and the Toffees might have the latest member of an illustrious belt of talent in teenage full-back Mathew Mallon.
Who is Mathew Mallon?
The Liverpool-born defender joined the Goodison Park side's academy at the age of four, since rising the ladder and has now made his debut for the U21s, where he clinched an assist against Arsenal for David Unsworth's side.
Listing his 'pace, strength, defending and crossing' as his standout attributes, Mallon has now chalked up 43 appearances for Everton's respective youth outfits, scoring twice and supplying three assists, with Liverpool Echo reporter Sam Carroll stating he's "impressive every time I've watched him,"
The 19-year-old is yet to make his senior debut for his Premier League side, but given the right-back's dynamism and blend of qualities, he could soon wedge his way into Dyche's first-team plans.
In 2022, there were rumours that Mallon was poised to make a permanent switch to Blackburn Rovers, but soon after the ace penned his first professional contract with Everton, with Director of Football Kevin Thelwell saying:
"He has a strong mix of strengths that are needed in the modern-day full-back and we look forward to him continuing his progression on the next chapter of his journey."
Everton's right-back department currently boasts Nathan Patterson and club captain Seamus Coleman as the first-team candidates, but given the latter is approaching the twilight phase of his career, Mallon could soon earn the opportunity to impress.
What has Seamus Coleman achieved at Everton?
Coleman might be approaching his 35th birthday and playing a remarkable 15th season in the Everton shirt, but he is not done yet and earned a new contract with the club this summer, keeping him on the books until the end of the season.
The stalwart has made 409 appearances and has contributed 28 goals and 32 assists since joining from Republic of Ireland side Sligo Rovers in 2009 under the management of David Moyes.
The 68-cap international has been hailed for his performance against title-chasing Arsenal only last season, with FourFourTwo's Mark White saying the 34-year-old "locks up every left-winger Arsenal ever throw at him."
As per WhoScored, the £55k-per-week right-back has averaged an impressive career pass success rate of 79.9% across the duration of his professional career for Everton and Ireland, also making one interception, 1.7 tackles and 1.9 clearances per game.
Also still ranking among the top 7% of positional peers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year, as per FBref, Coleman is a tenacious and composed presence at the back, excellent at sweeping away danger.
Big boots to fill, but Mallon is embracing the all-encompassing role of a full-back and will now be pushing to take the veteran's baton and cement a starting berth in Dyche's team in the future.
He's very much in the maiden stage of his career, but Mallon could be a shrewd, homegrown option to lead from the back at Goodison Park for years to come, emulating club icon Coleman who very much boasts similar traits.
