Everton have officially sacked Rafa Benitez, becoming the fifth manager to be shown the door since Farhad Moshiri became the majority shareholder at the club in 2016, and there are already a number of managers being named as potential suitors for the position.

Frank Lampard, Wayne Rooney and Roberto Martinez have all been identified as rumoured targets as Benitez's successor at the club, after Sky Sports journalist, Ben Ransom, named the trio live at Finch Farm on Sunday afternoon.

However, there is a manager that was closely linked with the Everton job before they appointed the Spaniard in the summer.

Nuno Espirito Santo is currently out of work, after being sacked by Tottenham Hotspur following a poor start to the season, and was replaced with Italian manager, Antonio Conte, but could become the perfect appointment for Everton in their current situation where they find themselves 16th in the Premier League this season.

The Portuguese coach earned his credibility and respect in the top-flight during his tenure at Wolverhampton Wanderers taking them from midtable in the Championship to a Europa League quarter-final and an FA Cup semi-final, establishing themselves as a Premier League club finishing as high as seventh in two consecutive seasons in the league under his guidance.

His 47.7% win ratio at Molineux surpasses the 47.1% Wolves completed as they won three league titles in the 1950s under Stanley Cullis, earning him high praise from respected figures in English football, with Gary Lineker hailing the manager "fabulous" upon his mutual departure from the Midlands club.

Lineker told viewers of Match of the Day after Wolves were defeated in Nuno's last game in charge:

“Ultimately, a disappointing farewell for Nuno but he’s done a fabulous job there over the years and turned them into a real, proper Premier League club.”

Moshiri could hire Nuno and utilise his proven experience in building a club up from mediocrity to challenging in Europe and domestic competitions, finally giving Everton fans something to smile about after a nightmare season so far, with an ongoing lack of success, going further back then Moshiri's Everton journey, which has seen the club without a trophy for almost 27 years.

Everton have confirmed in a statement that they will announce the new manager at Goodison Park in due course, with currently no word of any official approach being made for any prospective appointment so far.

That said, we think it should be the former Wolves and Tottenham boss who is handed the keys to Goodison Park.

In other news: Sky Sports journalist reveals favourites for the job