Sean Dyche bolstered his Everton squad well in the last transfer window to date, signing experienced personnel such as Ashley Young mixed with exciting attacking talents being added to the squad from abroad such as Beto to give his group a nice blend ahead of an expected battle against the drop.
Other transfer windows from the past have generated more hype with the bodies brought into the building away from the more low-key approach by Dyche, namely the summer 2018/19 window where Everton splashed major cash on Lucas Digne and Yerry Mina from Barcelona, whilst also raiding the then manager Marco Silva's ex-club Watford for Richarlison.
All three players would go on to have successful careers in Everton blue over a number of seasons, before departing for pastures new recently.
Yet, a forgotten face from that same transfer window has managed to rejuvenate his career – Bernard's career looked to have fallen to the wayside after an up-and-down time in Merseyside but the attacking midfielder has managed to turn his fortunes around.
How much did Everton spend on Bernard?
Everton signed the diminutive attacking midfielder on a free transfer back in 2018, the 5 foot 5 winger joining the Toffees after a dazzling season with Shakhtar Donetsk.
Bernard scored nine goals in total for the Ukrainian outfit during the 2017/18 campaign, notably netting versus Manchester City in a Champions League group stage tie as Donetsk humbled Pep Guardiola's men 2-1.
Everton landing the attacking midfielder on a free transfer deal felt like a steal at the time, a low-risk high-reward deal for the Toffees.
Why did Everton sell Bernard?
Despite not flopping instantly in a Toffees strip – Bernard a regular first-teamer during Everton's 2018/19 season playing all but four of the Premier League games that campaign – his days were numbered as an Everton man after Carlo Ancelotti arrived onto the scene as boss.
In his final season on Merseyside, the Brazilian midfielder would only feature 12 times with his playing time reduced to a grand total of 448 minutes.
By the end of his three-season stint with the Blues, he was very much a player afforded a few minutes here and there off the bench without ever breaking back into the first-team fold.
But, with eight goals and seven assists from 87 starts for the club, he didn't leave the Premier League as a complete, abject failure as he did contribute when infrequently called upon.
He would leave Everton for the United Arab Emirates in 2021, Bernard rumoured to be receiving a huge pay packet after swapping Merseyside for the Middle East.
How has Bernard performed since leaving Everton?
The 31-year-old has been a globetrotter since leaving Goodison Park behind, playing in both the UAE and Greece with Sharjah and Panathinaikos respectively.
Comparing his statistics with the likes of Dwight McNeil still with the Toffees, the skilful Brazilian is actually now outperforming the English winger.
He has out-assisted McNeil by some distance, scoring 11 goals and assisting a further 11 goals in total since leaving Everton. Last term, he racked up five assists, whilst McNeil, served up three in 2022/23, proving to be off his creative best.
The ex-Donetsk man has also been prolific not just in terms of assisting, netting three goals already this campaign in Super League 1 for the Greens of Panathinaikos.
Everton could well do with the experience of Bernard as another attacking option in their current set-up, the 31-year-old excelling away from Goodison Park after leaving the Toffees under Rafa Benitez for a fee under £1m.