Alli & VDB in, "reckless" £120k-p/w dud finally axed: Lampard's strongest Everton XI - opinion

Everton have had a huge makeover during the first month of the year, signing five new players, saying goodbye to Lucas Digne and Rafa Benitez, and then ending the month by confirming Frank Lampard as the new manager to lead the squad into their challenging last few months of the season.

This new era for the Toffees could not have come at a better time as they are set to take on Brentford in the FA Cup fourth round this weekend and the Premier League returns shortly after, with the side needing to hit the ground running to avoid a relegation battle.

Lampard has already been pictured alongside Duncan Ferguson leading his first training session on Tuesday, and there are many options to consider for his first starting line up.

Here at Football FanCast we have predicted how the former Chelsea boss could pick his team.

Lampard predominantly has favoured a 4-2-3-1 formation over his managerial career and was something we saw a lot of in his stint as Chelsea manager.

We expect that Donny van de Beek and Dele Alli will be given an instant opportunity to impress in the starting line up, with Abdoulaye Doucoure out injured for at least the next four weeks, it elevates the former’s chances of being able to make a good impression on his new manager.

Alli would replace former Toffees manager Benitez’s common choice of Andre Gomes in the attacking role behind the striker, especially with the £120k-per-week flop who was criticised for being “reckless” by Everton journalist, David Prentice, struggling to make a significant impact.

As a result, Lampard will be looking for a more consistent threat in the position by utilising his options.

We would also expect January signing, Vitaliy Mykolenko to start in Lampard’s strongest XI in the