It might have generally flown under the radar that there was no Anwar El Ghazi for Everton at the weekend. Of course there wasn't, he's cup-tied and so was ineligible to appear in the FA Cup.
But, let's be realistic, would he have even made it onto the pitch for the Blues if he was available? Even when you consider the injury suffered by Andros Townsend in the first half of Sunday afternoon's humbling loss at Selhurst Park.
He was not included in the squad to face Newcastle United a few days previously, despite there being no talk of any injury problems for the winger ahead of the game. The most that Evertonians have seen of their new man has been his involvement in training pictures and videos from Finch Farm.
In truth, as the weeks go by, El Ghazi's loan switch to Goodison Park becomes ever more perplexing. His two appearances for the club since January only just get over double figures in terms of minutes played.
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The majority of his time on Merseyside has been spent on the bench, and when he has made it onto the pitch he's not been given enough time to effectively make an impact on proceedings. Between now and the end of the campaign, you find it hard to see how this is going to change.
In many ways, El Ghazi can perhaps be considered a little unfortunate. It's not his fault that he was brought into the side when he filled a position that many could see Everton actually had a number of strong options in.
Anthony Gordon, Demarai Gray, Townsend, Richarlison, Alex Iwobi and even youngsters such as Lewis Dobbin have the capabilities of taking up those positions on the flanks in the current squad. You'd have a strong argument to suggest they are actually the areas the Blues have the most depth.
The Dutch international had struggled to keep his place regularly in the Aston Villa line-up throughout the first half of the season following their strong recruitment in the summer transfer window. With the trend continuing into the winter, it seemed only natural that the forward would move somewhere new.
But Everton was an interesting choice. As stated before, the club realistically didn't need to be bringing a player into that position.
His arrival on Merseyside was somewhat tainted by the fact that, through no fault of his own of course, it coincided with Lucas Digne heading the other way. Much to the dismay of many Blues supporters, Rafael Benitez had won the day in his battle with the defender.
Rumour did still swirl around the arrival of El Ghazi, though. Who's idea was it to bring him to the club? Where would he fit into the new system? Was there a potential for this to turn into a permanent switch?
Any comments from the manager that signed him for the club were conspicuous by their absence after the announcement of his signature. Although, the Spaniard did address his latest signing a couple of days later.
He told the written media at the time : "To be fair, with the Covid situation, with injuries and also (Alex) Iwobi away from here for nearly one month, it was an opportunity. If there is a player on loan, with quality, that wants to come, who wants to prove himself, then maybe it is a win-win situation. That was the idea.
"I was talking with the player to be sure he was keen to come, and he has the desire to do well for us, and he was quite positive. In the end, hopefully he can improve our squad."
That final point was what many of the most optimistic Evertonians were choosing to focus on. The winger might not be a regular starter between now and the end of the campaign, but he can surely bolster options from the bench and be a quality squad option if needed.
Think Joshua King, if you need a recent example. In fact, he's managed to get even less opportunities than the Norway international - who eventually left the Blues last summer frustrated at the chances he got.
Even if Benitez did have some plans to integrate El Ghazi in the future weeks and months, they were soon proven obsolete. Three days after the winger's arrival on Merseyside, the manager was sacked.
If the Aston Vila man wasn't destined to be in a state of limbo already, then it was almost confirmed to be the case when a new boss was appointed. His loan also brought with it an interesting situation for Frank Lampard right at the beginning of his tenure.
Of course, Everton had used one of their allocated loan moves to bring the winger to the club, and they quickly used another to secure the signing of Donny van de Beek at the strict request of the new boss.
Perhaps, with another loan option available to him, the Blues might have been able to strengthen a separate area of their squad before a crucial second half of the season. But maybe it's not worth speculating, as it will solve nothing.
Where does El Ghazi now stand, though? Even with Townsend set to miss the remaining months of the season, you find it tricky to see how much will change in the coming weeks.
Lampard's chopping and changing of the system could well open up opportunities to others further down the line, but Iwobi has just grabbed the most recent presented to him with both hands. If it came down to giving an exciting youngster such as Dobbin some minutes or using a player who will no doubt leave the club in a few months as well, which is the manager most likely to prefer?
The Dutch international will likely be back in the squad following the international break, but the amount of minutes he picks up remains to be seen. There is, of course, the potential that he could earn an unlikely opportunity and really prove himself to be the difference in the remaining matches of the term.
But, if he can't do that, then perhaps he will be consigned to a similar forgotten spell that King had just a year previously.
