There have been plenty of positive signs since Carlo Ancelotti made the move to Everton.

The Toffees have won five of his first 12 games, drawing three and losing four – and even those defeats came against Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea. Coming in after Marco Silva, the Italian seems to have steadied the ship – but there is still plenty of work to do.

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There have been some slight defensive troubles – they have shipped 19 times during his tenure – which means a new centre-back could be eyed in the summer. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Marash Kumbulla is one of those they are targeting.

The Hellas Verona man has had a meteoric rise in the past few months.

Just last June, he was worth just £68,000 according to popular football website Transfermarkt. Now, his value stands at £22.5m.

Here, we take a look at the reasons behind that exponential increase…

Brilliant 19/20 campaign

So far this season Verona have conceded just 26 goals in Serie A – that is better than all but three other sides in the division, and even they are the current top three. Kumbulla has featured in 18 of the 26 matches to date, and has impressed with his displays.

It was against the mightiest of them all, Juventus, where he particularly stood out. Verona ended up winning 2-1, and the 20-year-old was a rock. He made six tackles, two clearances, one interception, whilst he also prevailed in seven of his eight ground duels as well.

Restricting Cristiano Ronaldo and co to just one goal is easier said than done – Kumbulla played a massive part in that.

First cap for Albania

Kumbulla was actually born in Peschiera del Garda in Italy, but his ancestry made him eligible to play for the Balkan nation, and it is them he has decided to represent.

He earned his first call-up in September of last year, but he remained on the bench for the matches against France and Iceland. In October, though, he finally made his debut, albeit playing just one minute in the 4-0 win over Moldova.

Still, representing his country has only boosted his profile.

Premier League interest

He may have done well with Hellas Verona, but it seems unlikely that he will spend his whole career with the club, especially considering the amount of sides said to be interested in his services.

Along with the Toffees, of course, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea are all said to be eyeing the defender, just like Internazionale in Italy.

Having some of the biggest clubs on the planet in pursuit will only increase his value, and it does mean that Everton have a fight on their hands to convince him to join.

Should they be able to do so, though, it could be a big coup, helping Ancelotti to build for the future.