Frank Lampard told forgotten signing is "real deal" for Everton rebuild

Everton boss Frank Lampard has been told by former Chelsea star Pat Nevin that defender Nathan Patterson is the “real deal” despite a nightmare start at Goodison Park.

The 20-year-old right-back arrived at the Toffees back in January, just weeks before Lampard succeeded Rafael Benitez as Everton ’s manager, leaving Rangers to sign a five and a half-year contract. That move was for an initial £5.5million, but could rise to as high as £11m in add-ons.

However, Patterson has played just once for the Toffees during a narrow FA Cup win over National League side Boreham Wood, a game where he was taken off at half-time in a 2-0 victory. The young full-back missed the final portion of last season with an ankle injury sustained in training that required surgery.

Despite Everton fans not seeing a lot of Patterson so far, Nevin, whose playing career included over 100 league appearances for Chelsea and Rangers, as well as 28 international caps for Scotland, believes that once Patterson is injury free and up to speed, he will thrive on Merseyside.

“I think it was injury above everything,” Nevin told BoyleSports when asked about Patterson’s limited chances. “He had a niggle when he came down there and then he got a longer-term one after that. So that was the thing that held him back. Sometimes it's hard to come back from an injury into a struggling team.

“The manager is trying a million different things. I was at the game where he played Boreham Wood and that was Nathan's start or his restart after his injuries. And it went really badly, not for him but the team was having a stinker, I was calling it on the radio, Frank needed to change the system. Then he did and the guy who had to go was Nathan.

“But Everton fans shouldn't