After a successful first season at Barnsley, Mason Holgate was in demand, but after a trial at Old Trafford it was Everton who won the battle to sign him, giving him a five-year contract and handing over a fee around the £2m mark. A central defender primarily he was picked at right back by Ronald Koeman before Carlo Ancelotti re-established him at the heart of Everton’s defence, but throughout his days at Everton he never made more than 28 Premier League appearances in any one season and when Sean Dyche considered him surplus to requirements at the outset of the 2023-24 season, Saints signed him on a season’s loan.

He made his debut in the 5-0 mauling at the Stadium of Light and became the main scapegoat for the team’s awful performance. He did overcome his rustiness, but spending as much time on the bench as he did on the pitch, Everton recalled him and then sent him to struggling Sheffield United for more Premier League football. His debut for the Blades was as traumatic as his first start for the Saints and he has the unenviable record of being on the receiving end of two 5-0 debut drubbings in the same season.