Everton have yet again found themselves in an unstable position in the Premier League this season, although Frank Lampard will be afforded the opportunity to find solutions to the team’s poor form when they return to action after Christmas.

The Toffees are currently 17th in the table after a string of lacklustre performances which has left them just one point clear of the relegation zone.

Only Wolverhampton Wanderers have scored fewer goals than Everton over the top-flight campaign so far, with the Goodison Park outfit finding the net just 11 times in their first 15 league outings.

As a result, Lampard will surely be looking ahead to the transfer window to find the perfect profile of player who can boost goal contributions in the team and help them to pick up crucial points in order to avoid another difficult relegation scrap over the second half of the campaign.

One player who has been linked with a move to Goodison Park in the New Year is Ajax and Ghana star Mohammed Kudus, for whom Everton had a £15m bid rejected in the summer. Such is his form, however, that he’s now worth double that according to recent reports.

The talented 22-year-old ranks in the top 1% of his positional peers in the top five European leagues this year for passes attempted, pass completion and dribbles completed. He also ranks in the top 5% for shots on goal, progressive passes and touches, proving that he is one of the hottest prospects in European football right now.

Not only has Kudus been impressing at club level, he was also the standout performer on the international stage for Ghana at the World Cup in Qatar over the last month.

In three appearances at the finals, the attacker – who was dubbed a “special talent” by sport writer Yaw Ampofo Jr – scored two goals, completed 71% of his dribbles and won 53% of his duels, along with averaging 1.7 tackles, 2.7 shots on goal and 47.7 touches per game.

After losing Richarlison to Tottenham Hotspur over the summer, the Ghana international could be the perfect heir to the Brazilian winger at Everton. He is also hugely versatile in his positioning in the final third, with experience of playing in attacking midfield, central midfield, centre-forward and on the right wing.

This has echoes of the current Tottenham attacker, who played at centre-forward and on both flanks during his time on Merseyside.

If the powers at Goodison Park can secure Kudus’ signature in the New Year, he could make a huge difference to Everton’s attacking threat as they set out to protect their Premier League status once again.