Look in the replies to any of Everton's recent tweets, and it won't be long until you see something along the lines of: "Announce some signings!"
Well, words to that effect at the very least. And...not always as polite as that, shall we say. But, it effectively summarises a feeling of impatience that is beginning to permeate through into at least some sections of social media.
With the transfer window picking up among other sides, sometimes with deals including players Everton have been linked to (however slightly) in the past, frustration among some at a lack of arrivals is starting to grow. In a lot of respects, that is understandable and shouldn't be dismissed out of hand.
READ MORE: Everton's US game with Arsenal a far cry from paradise island trip after first Premier League season
READ MORE: 12 new contracts signed so far as Everton look to stars of the future
This is a squad that, of course, only just managed to secure their Premier League status with a come-from-behind victory in the penultimate match of the campaign. And objectively, despite the arrival of James Tarkowski to bolster an important area of the pitch, it's a squad that is objectively worse as things stand following the exit of Richarlison.
But, a belief from some quarters that the Brazilian's transfer to Spurs might bring with it a hive of incoming activity on Everton's end has not been forthcoming. The Blues have helped to ease their concerning financial situation with that deal, but it doesn't come with a subsequent war chest to boot.
As it stands, the Blues find themselves in an interesting situation in this transfer market. First off, and very crucially, they have a new recruitment team who are just developing their ideas for what they want the club to look like in the future - and are making their first steps in doing so.
Secondly comes the financial situation. While Everton do now have money to spend in the current window, it certainly doesn't mean they will be splashing the cash.
The feeling is that this will still be a window in which the club might need to be a bit more clever in their dealings. Perhaps they will look towards utilising the loan market again, along with a need to negotiate a price down from other sides if they are to bid money for players.
Teams may well look towards the money brought in by the Blues for Richarlison and demand extra for their players, which might well have been paid in the past. But, they now cannot be in the position to spend over-the-odds for their targets.
At this point some will be pointing to other sides in the division getting their work done early. Spurs, for example, have brought a lot of talent to the club already - sides like Nottingham Forest have moved quickly to strengthen following their promotion.
But it's not as if Everton are sitting on their hands, waiting until the final stretches of the transfer window before making a move. These are often intricate negotiations with a lot of moving parts, and much of the time the aims of all parties don't match up right away.
The harsh truth of it all is that you can't judge a transfer window until it's over. That might seem like a risk and counter-productive to some, but that's the lay of the land.
Just because Everton haven't spent money on high-profile moves as of yet, that's not an indication of what they might do in the future. Some are looking at the likes of Maxwel Cornet with an apparent relegation clause in his contract, or Emmanuel Dennis with a reported £20m price tag on him.
Some are left asking - why aren't the Blues moving quickly for these players? They would improve the squad, so get them in now to avoid any potential disappointment down the line.
But, what if Everton held off, and ended up with a better deal for a more suitable player later in the transfer window? That is still a possibility at this stage, and only time will tell if that can come to fruition.
Essentially, the priority right now has to surround bringing in the right players, regardless of what stage of the window they arrive in. If it takes a bit more time to secure the perfect talent, then so be it.
Arguably the best transfer window since the influx of Farhad Moshiri's cash to the club came in the summer of 2018 - in which Richarlison became the Blues' first arrival on 24th July. Lucas Digne followed a week later with the arrivals of Bernard, Yerry Mina, Andre Gomes and Kurt Zouma all added before the window shut.
In the same breath, however, you can understand the concerns. As stated previously these legitimate gripes cannot be dismissed out-of-hand.
Leaving things until later in the transfer window means that you give any incoming signings less time to integrate into the squad and with his new manager's tactics. It could leave sides more steadfast in the bids to keep any top talents from leaving, as their chances of finding a replacement with less time left in the window are reduced.
It all boils down to uncertainty, when you think about it. No-one knows what is going to happen for the rest of the transfer window, and nobody can realistically predict how the Everton squad will look.
This is a tough period for the club to find itself in of course. Not just transfer uncertainty but confusion over a potential takeover and unrest over the running of the club from some quarters, with banners being placed outside Goodison Park as recently as Monday evening, still remains.
In terms of the make-up of the squad, though, there's an element of patience that needs to be had here. Just because new arrivals haven't been forthcoming as of yet, doesn't mean that there's necessarily failures behind-the-scenes or anything along those lines.
We can revisit this when the transfer window is over. Until then, there's got to be a certain amount of trust in Frank Lampard and Kevin Thelwell to lead the club through.
READ NEXT:
- Everton charged with 'two breaches' of FA rule following Crystal Palace win
- Everton confirm 32-man squad as players fly out for USA tour
- Crucial Everton meeting shows important groundwork being laid for the future
- Frank Lampard left waiting as Everton continue trend under Farhad Moshiri
- Frank Lampard might just have been handed an unexpected Everton boost
