Everton return to action in the Premier League this weekend making the trip down to the south coast for their clash with Southampton, and Frank Lampard will be hoping his team can keep up their unbeaten run when they take on Ralph Hasenhuttl's side.

Everton have drawn four and won one of their last five games in the league which will be an absolute delight to the manager who has endured a difficult challenge since joining the Toffees back in January during a difficult relegation battle that saw the saved in the penultimate game of the season.

Now the future is looking bright for the Merseysiders and with eight new signings in tow, the team seem to be much stronger defensively in the performances we have seen over their first seven Premier League outings thanks to the quickly-formed formidable centre-back partnership blossoming between James Tarkowski and Conor Coady.

Not only that the squad have had fitness boosts over the last few weeks with Abdoulaye Doucoure returning and now another player who wasn't quite match fit to start the season could be unleashed by Lampard this weekend.

The Everton manager took to his pre-match press conference to confirm that former Manchester United midfielder James Garner could be in contention to finally make an appearance in blue on Saturday afternoon:

"James, when he [first] came here, he wasn't fit - he declared that to me.

"For West Ham, he was kind of fit, but then it's great that he played a game - and played so well - for England Under-21s.

"Now he's ready to go. He's impressed me in training very much, as a lad and as a player."

The young £15m midfielder, who was hailed a "raw talent" by journalist Rich Fay, caught the attention of a number of Premier League clubs following his impressive season-long loan with Nottingham Forest in the Championship last season.

Garner scored four goals, contributed eight assists and created seven big chances from his position in the centre of the pitch, as well as offering a consistent defensive output too with 1.4 interceptions, 1.8 tackles and 3.9 duels won per game last season, and now Lampard can take full advantage of the 21-year-old's versatile set of skills.

With that being said, the game against Southampton could be the perfect opportunity for Garner to make his debut for Everton and prove his worth to his new manager, as he could become a really important player in the heart of the team over the season ahead.