After a disappointing relegation scrap at the bottom of the table last season, Everton are enjoying a much more comfortable period in their current Premier League campaign, unbeaten in their last five and finally picking up their first win against West Ham United last weekend.

There is no doubt that the new signings acquired over the summer have made a hugely positive impact on the team over the season so far with Conor Coady and James Tarkowski's centre-back partnership one of the most notable improvements in the Toffees' starting line-up.

Frank Lampard will be delighted with the progress the team have made over their first seven outings in the top flight, and combining the talents of Coady and Tarkowski was a genius move from the former Chelsea boss.

The Everton manager has lavished praise on the pair for their contributions and partnership so far. hailing them "throwback professionals" in an interview with The Athletic:

“Their personalities are huge and they’ve affected the dressing room in a brilliant way," he began.

“I love that. They’re throwback professionals that do their jobs and set standards.

“They’re playing well but defensively that was a game we could lose last season. Players like Conor and James through the spine of the team absolutely help you.”

However, the success of the centre-back pairing could be short-lived and shelved as a one-season wonder come next summer as the former Wolverhampton Wanderers captain is only on a season-long loan at Goodison Park. That said, Lampard could have a trick up his sleeve to ensure that if Coady does depart at the end of the season, he has another quality option to look towards.

Jarrad Branthwaite is currently on loan with PSV Eindhoven and it is safe to say the young defender is truly in his element in the Eredivisie with his consistent output over the season so far.

The 20-year-old has scored once and tallied up a pass completion rate of 93%, as well as winning the large majority of his aerial and ground duels combined (73%) over four appearances, contributing to the Dutch side's dominance at the top of the table in the league.

Branthwaite has been a young talent that Everton managers have been keeping an eye on for years, with now Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti hailing the 6 foot 5 sensation as "really skilful" back in 2020, and there is no doubt that current manager Lampard will be keeping tabs on his progression and development over his loan spell in the Netherlands.

With that being said, the Toffees do have a £12m option to buy Coady at the end of the season but it remains to be seen whether the club will keep hold of the experienced defender or take their chances on a young rising star in Branthwaite instead.