Everton have been enjoying a much more comfortable start to this Premier League season over their first nine outings compared to 2021/22, and Frank Lampard will be delighted with the progress made after a series of much-needed tweaks over the summer.

The Toffees signed nine new players in the most recent transfer window in order to not only revive the team after a serious relegation scrap in the last campaign, but to also replace some of the deadwood in the squad who were not contributing at the level needed for the team to thrive.

Conor Coady, James Tarkowski and Amadou Onana are just a few of the players who have made an instant impact on the team and have quickly become regular and trusted players in Lampard's starting line-up.

With that being said, the powerbrokers at Goodison Park have also been cut-throat in cutting ties with a number of players who were not pulling their weight whilst collecting a hefty cheque weekly at the club, and one man who seemingly embodies that attitude towards his football is Andre Gomes.

The 29-year-old was sent out on loan after failing to make the cut in Lampard's new-look Everton side, moving to France to see out the season with Lille, and it is safe to say the Toffees manager made the right decision.

The £113k-per-week Portuguese midfielder was once viewed as a player who could be the next star for the Merseysiders when he joined on loan in 2018. He impressed then-Everton boss Marco Silva, who one year later sanctioned the £22m permanent signing of Gomes on a five-year deal until 2024.

Since then, the player's contributions and efforts at the Merseyside club have dwindled, making just seven appearances under Lampard in the second half of last season totalling a mere 403 minutes.

When you consider Gomes' contributions at Lille, it is a real reflection of exactly why the Toffees manager ultimately stopped playing the midfielder in his Everton side last season.

The 29-year-old, who was described as "reckless" by journalist David Prentice, has made two starts for his loan club in Ligue 1, completing just 50% of his dribbles, losing 58% of his combined duels, making no key passes, no goal contributions and creating zero big chances from his central role so far.

With that in mind, there should be no doubt that Lampard will be hoping to finally offload Gomes at the end of his loan stint with Lille next summer, and any money they would be able to recoup would be a huge boost for Everton.