Everton manager Ronald Koeman has expressed interest in bringing Wayne Rooney back to his boyhood club.
The 31-year-old Manchester United record goalscorer issued a statement last week saying he was staying put for now, amid interest from China, but his long-term future remains unclear.
With an emotional return to Goodison Park possibly on the cards, we look at a selection of other players who have returned to a club at which they developed in the youth ranks, and how they fared.
Paul Pogba (Manchester United 2009-2012 and 2016-)
Pogba first arrived at Old Trafford as a 16-year-old, in a controversial move from Le Havre. The French club claimed Pogba had been illegally poached. He won the 2011 Youth Cup with the Red Devils, but became frustrated at being given only a handful of senior games and moved to Juventus in 2012 for £800,000. The 23-year-old has largely not yet lived up to the hype since completing a world-record £89million move back to Manchester last summer, but will be looking to kick on after picking up his first silverware in Sunday's EFL Cup triumph over Southampton.
Robbie Fowler (Liverpool 1986-2001 and 2006-2007)
Childhood Evertonian Fowler switched allegiances when snapped up by Liverpool's youth academy aged 11, and went on to become a firm fans' favourite. The man nicknamed 'God' by the Anfield faithful won two League Cups, the second coming in 2001 along with the FA Cup and UEFA Cup. The treble-winning season turned out to be his last on Merseyside, with his involvement becoming limited by the partnership of Michael Owen and Emile Heskey. Fowler returned on a free transfer to much fanfare five years later, but fitness problems hampered his form and he was cup-tied for the Reds' FA Cup success.
Peter Beardsley (Newcastle in late 1970s, 1983-1987 and 1993-1997)
Beardsley was released as a teenager by Magpies manager Bill McGarry in the late 1970s, but returned to St James' Park in 1983 and became an instant hit thanks to his creativity and exciting strike partnership with Kevin Keegan. He left for Liverpool in 1987 but returned six years later, with the team newly promoted to the Premier League and now under the guidance of Keegan. He helped the Magpies finish runners-up in 1996 and 1997, netting 56 goals in 157 appearances in his second spell before joining Bolton in 1997.
Joe Cole (West Ham 1994-2003 and 2013-14)
A product of West Ham's famed youth academy, Cole progressed through the ranks at Upton Park before making his first-team debut in 1999 at the age of 17. He was named 'Hammer of the Year' in 2003, and promptly left for London rivals Chelsea. Three years at Liverpool and a brief Lille loan followed before the England international returned to his roots, scoring five goals in 37 appearances after signing an 18-month contract in January 2013.
Mark Hughes (Manchester United 1978-80 and 1988-95)
Hughes joined the United set-up as a 14-year-old in 1978 and made himself a key member of the team before leaving for Barcelona in 1986. His time overseas, which also included a loan at Bayern Munich, did not go to plan, however, and he returned to Old Trafford in 1988 for a £1.5million. He quickly picked up where he had left off. Manager Sir Alex Ferguson once labelled Hughes "the best big-game player" he had known. The Welshman won two Premier League titles, two FA Cups, a League Cup, a European Cup Winners' Cup in his seven-year second spell and was twice named PFA Player of the Year.
Source: PA
