As a footballing institution, Everton are widely recognised for unearthing talented prospects from their youth team and facilitating their development to becoming stars.
The latest of those to rise to first-team stardom was Anthony Gordon. He was a rare beam of shining light during a dark period for the club, thrilling supporters with his frenetic performances and ultimately earning the academy graduate a £45m move to Newcastle United in January.
Since his departure, the Toffees have missed his ability to conjure up a piece of individual quality, with none of their current players stepping up to the plate in the final third, including summer signing Beto.
Summarizing Beto's performance this season
Arriving from Italian giants Udinese for a fee in the region of £25.75m, Beto was expected to take on the mantle of goalscoring and become the dominant focal point that the Merseyside club desired.
A prototypical Sean Dyche striker, who is physically strong and aerially dominant, but also comfortable with the ball at his feet and can make rapid surges towards goal, were qualities that the 6 foot 4 powerhouse demonstrated in the Serie A.
Bullying defenders with his frightening build and supplying the precise finishing to match, Beto recorded two double-figure scoring campaigns at Udinese, with 13 in the 2021/22 season and ten in the following campaign.
Those goalscoring exploits, in particular, offered supporters hope that he could become a revelation at Goodison Park, much like Romelu Lukaku did all them years ago.
Unfortunately, the towering marksman has failed to hit the ground running so far and while he's "caused a lot of problems", as claimed by former Everton defender Michael Bell in their victory over Brentford, he only has one goal to show for it in the Carabao Cup win over Doncaster Rovers.
It is painfully clear that Everton are in dire need of an added dimension up front, perhaps a burst of pace and skill to outfox opponents, and teenage prospect Francis Okoronkwo could be the man for the job.
A closer look at Everton's academy star, Francis Okoronkwo
Okoronkwo has been at Everton since joining from Sunderland in a deal believed to be worth £1m in 2021 and became the latest exciting talent to leave the North East outfit for a Premier League club, joining the likes of striker Joe Hugill and Logan Pye, who both departed for Manchester United.
Boasting lightning speed and movement, he revealed on Everton's official website that his current favourite player at Everton was Dominic Calvert-Lewin and if he continues impressing in the youth set-up, he could soon get his chance to replace him.
Since arriving at the club two years ago, the 19-year-old has progressed from the under-18's, where he scored nine goals and supplied three assists in 16 appearances, to now terrorising opposition defences in Premier League 2 with two goals and one assist in six appearances this term.
Everton's official website also dubbed him as 'skilful' and he's certainly proven that this campaign, combining his fleet-footed dribbling and precise finishing to devastating effect.
Whilst the "highly-rated" talent – as hailed by journalist Bolarinwa Olajide – continues to tear apart the opposition in Premier League 2, Everton's desire to include him in the senior squad will grow stronger, with the Englishman demonstrating his ability to slalom past defenders and inject boundless amounts of speed in the final third.
With a keen eye for goal too, which journalist Patrick Boyland once lauded his propensity for a "composed finish", the teenager has already outlined his desire to break into the first-team set-up suggesting his preparedness for the step up.
He claimed back in January: “My ambition now is to be that focal point for the Under-21s, be the No.9 that all the players can rely on.
“I want to play more minutes, score more, keep adding assists and hopefully towards the end of the season, have a few sessions with the First Team to get a taste for what that’s like in the coming years. You can see there’s a pathway to the senior squad.”
With a goal record not to be snuffed at and the capacity to provide some much-needed flair, the teenage sensation could offer something completely different to the immobile Beto and the misfiring Calvert-Lewin, with the pair only scoring a combined four goals in 15 matches between them.
The stats behind why Everton need added flair in the final third
In January 2020, Gordon made his debut for the Merserysiders as a second-half substitute against West Ham United, describing it as the "best day" of his life.
The Englishman provided supporters with a sprinkle of his flair and dynamism, which is something that Okoronkwo could supply his side if given a chance and it is those qualities that the Toffees are crying out for, especially in their position of peril at the bottom of the Premier League table.
With three points separating them from 18th-place Burnley, it is clear that Dyche's current strategy isn't getting the best out of the talent he has at his disposal and this is evidenced by their fortunes in front of goal.
Although Everton are creating a larger volume of opportunities, ranking in seventh for xG accumulated (17.66), as per Understat, the Toffees have only scored nine goals and have underperformed their xG by 8.66.
Statistically, Dyche's team are the worst in the division at taking their chances, accumulating a staggering 3.65 xG in their 2-1 defeat against Luton Town and 2.74 in their draw against Sheffield United.
Whilst their fortunes on the field paint a bleak picture, they haven't had a great deal to shout about off it with a potential point deduction only heightening their worries after supposedly breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules.
A dark cloud hangs over Goodison Park until a resolution is found for breaching FFP and the 777 Partners takeover is concluded, but until then, the Toffees could find their rare beam of shining light in the shape of Okoronkwo.