Frank Lampard's in-tray as he becomes Everton manager

Frank Lampard is set to become the new manager of Everton, finally bringing to an end what has at times been an excruciating recruitment process.

The former England midfielder, 43, who has previously managed Derby County and Chelsea, will be tasked with saving Everton from relegation after replacing the fired Rafael Benitez.

With the Toffees a lowly 16th in the Premier League table, just four points above the bottom three, Lampard will need to hit the ground running.

Here's a look at some of the items in Lampard's in-tray as he prepares to take up the position at Goodison Park.

Frank Lampard is set to be appointed as Everton's new manager and has plenty of work to do

Everton are only four points above the relegation zone following a dreadful run of results

A signing before the deadline to freshen up the squad

The recruitment process - in which Vitor Pereira, Duncan Ferguson and Wayne Rooney were other candidates - has last a fortnight since Benitez was sacked on January 16.

At times, it has seemed a whole lot longer with club legend Ferguson serving as caretaker manager for the 1-0 home defeat to Aston Villa.

Rooney revealed on Friday that he turned down the chance to be interviewed for the job at his boyhood club because the mission of rescuing crisis-hit Derby is 'important' to him.

Pereira, meanwhile, was said to have impressed major shareholder Farhad Moshiri and chairman Bill Kenwright in initial conversations but was then overlooked having come over to England believing he would be offered the job.

Rafael Benitez was sacked by Everton after a miserable 2-1 defeat at Norwich two weeks ago

So with the process dragging on, Lampard will be left with only a couple of days to make new signings before the transfer window closes on Monday night.

Ross Barkley, who has started just four matches for Chelsea this season, could return to his first club on a loan until the end of the season. Barkley worked with Lampard at Stamford Bridge.

And Everton are also looking to hijack Crystal Palace's move for the Manchester United outcast Donny van de Beek, another player with plenty to prove if they came to a fresh environment.  

Everton have also been linked with the unwanted Tottenham star Dele Alli and Lampard could present the midfielder with a chance to resurrect his career in the closing months of the season.

Ross Barkley has been linked with a return to Everton on loan from Chelsea before the deadline

Manchester United outcast Donny van de Beek could also be a potential Everton target

However, with the team in the midst of a survival battle, plenty would question whether Alli is the right type of character needed after his career slumped so dramatically at Spurs.

Everton have also been linked with another Chelsea player in Ruben Loftus-Cheek but Thomas Tuchel is reluctant to let him go having complained often about fatigue within his squad. 

Lampard will really be up against the clock if he wants to bring anyone in. There's no time for major surgery this month and he'll just have to work with what he's got.

Dele Alli could revive his faltering career by moving from Tottenham to Lampard's Everton

Get the mutinous fans onside

The good news for Lampard is that there isn't any major opposition from the fanbase at his appointment. This wouldn't have been the case for Pereira.

Ultimately, only results and a climb up the table will make him a popular boss.

There will also be plenty of fans who believe Ferguson should have been handed the job or at least kept on as caretaker until the end of the season, given how much the club means to him.

While it's understandable that Ferguson would want to move on having been overlooked for the position, Lampard could do far worse than at least ask him to be part of his backroom team.

There is a mutinous mood at Goodison Park with fans angry at Farhad Moshiri and the board

Vitor Pereira was the main candidate for the role before fan protests changed the thinking 

Everton chiefs, including majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri, have come under pressure

Few people understand the ethos and values of the club better than Ferguson and he could help Lampard navigate the settling in period.

But there's always difficulty in working with someone you've just beaten to the position and Lampard will no doubt have his own personnel in mind.

That won't include Jody Morris, his assistant at Derby and Chelsea, after the pair decided to go their separate ways and return to football independently of each other.

Bringing club legend Duncan Ferguson into his coaching staff could benefit Lampard 

Fix a leaky defence

There really have been some defensive horror shows for Everton this season. A 5-2 home defeat to Watford, in which they conceded four times in the final 12 minutes, springs to mind as a miserable collapse.

They also conceded four at home to Liverpool and three against Brighton. They also had a shocker against Norwich in what turned out to be Benitez's final game, conceding twice in two minutes.

They looked more defensively sound in the game against Aston Villa but still managed to concede from a corner at a crucial time just before the break.

A dejected Michael Keane after another poor Everton performance in defeat at Norwich

It's a central reason as to why they've only won one of their last 14 Premier League matches.

Lampard will have the benefit of a few days on the training ground before the FA Cup tie against Brentford on February 5.

Michael Keane has made too many mistakes this season and was dropped for the Villa game having put through his own net at Norwich. Lampard will need to decide whether to bring him back in or stick with Yerry Mina alongside Ben Godfrey or Mason Holgate.

Ideally, Lampard will settle on one centre-back combination and give them a run of games but he first needs to assess all the options.

Work is required to bring Vitaly Mykolenko up to speed in English football after he came in at left-back after he replaced Lucas Digne.

Lampard's Chelsea side weren't exactly the most resolute at the back and had a habit of conceding late goals to take just one point rather than three. Everton will have to hope he's learned a few lessons.

Restore Calvert-Lewin to his prolific best

Who knows if Benitez would still be in a job if Dominic Calvert-Lewin had been fit and firing all season. You'd like to imagine they'd have scored more than a paltry 24 Premier League goals.

The England striker scored three in three as Everton made a positive start to the league campaign but then fractured his toe and was on the sidelines until the beginning of January.

Everton have sorely missed the goals of England striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin this season

Calvert-Lewin hasn't found the net in three appearances since but rumours of top-four chasing West Ham's interest in him this month serves as a reminder of his class.

The fact Calvert-Lewin is still Everton's fourth leading scorer this season despite missing the vast majority of it is a pretty damning indictment of their attack.

Demarai Gray and Richarlison seem to be the only other players reliable enough to score in a league game.

Lampard flicked between a 4-3-3 and a 4-2-3-1 set-up at Chelsea and is likely to go with the latter at Everton. The team are used to it and it offers greater balance than an attacking formation.

Everton, unlike Chelsea, do not have the firepower to simply outscore opponents so there will have to be a trade-off.

Lampard could also do with Richarlison returning to his best form in the coming months 

But Calvert-Lewin can lead that attack with Richarlison, also just back from an injury, Gray and Andros Townsend supplying the service from wide areas.

Lampard will need to restore the shot confidence of an attack that struggles to create chances let alone take them. On paper, they have enough to win games, especially if a creative No 10 can be brought in.

Though the fans have been keen to point out it's 27 years now since Everton last won a trophy, the FA Cup tie with Brentford is a low priority.

Lampard must get his team in tune for the crucial trip to Newcastle a few days later, with matches against Leeds and Southampton coming after that.

If there is a new manager bounce in these games, the mood will be transformed and Everton will be close to mid-table safety.

Demarai Gray is one of the few Everton players to put the ball in the net so far this season

Trust in youth

One of the biggest positives of Lampard's time at Chelsea was his faith and investment in young academy players.

Part of the reason was a transfer embargo in his first summer but the likes of Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Reece James duly emerged as first-team regulars.

Lampard can boost Everton, and win the favour of the fans, by playing some of the club's talented youngsters.

Anthony Gordon, 20, who can play effectively on both flanks, has been a rare bright spark for the club this season.

20-year-old winger Anthony Gordon has been a rare positive for Everton so far this season

Centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, 19, has made a couple of appearances this season, even scoring against Chelsea, and deserves more opportunities.

Scotland international right-back Nathan Patterson, 20, is an exciting addition and will be pushing hard for inclusion.

Without the advantage of a pre-season, Lampard knows he has his work cut out in taking this job. Everton are in a mess and there's plenty of work to do without the luxury of much time to do it.

Nathan Patterson, signed from Rangers earlier this month, plays for the Everton U23 side