The visit of Leicester City is important for so many reasons.

The most obvious is the impact the result will have on the bottom of the table. This is the most significant weekend of fixtures in the survival race for some time. An Everton win would, at the very least, maintain the seven point gap to Wolves and Ipswich Town and put nine points between the Blues and Leicester, inflicting a massive blow on Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side just six days after their relegation battle was revived with that surprise win at Tottenham Hotspur.

Should the away side emerge victorious then not only would they close to within three points of Everton, but with Wolves facing a tough but winnable home game with Aston Villa and Ipswich hosting destined-to-be-relegated Southampton, the chasing pack could take a bite out of the lead David Moyes has built since his arrival.

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The relegation will not be won or lost on Saturday, but for the reasons above, it could take on a different complexion.

That is particularly important given that the January transfer window extends into next week. There is no doubt that Everton want to strengthen. The Friedkin Group has the money to fund improvements and are willing to spend. They were prepared to do so when Sean Dyche was at the helm at the start of the month, and that remains the case now under Moyes. While ambition is curtailed by the lingering consequences of Everton’s breaches of Profit and Sustainability Regulations (PSR), there is some money to spend.

One of the delays in spending it has been the desire to ensure it is used wisely. The change in the dugout has impacted plans, with Moyes keen to have his say on potential incomings and make sure appropriate due diligence is carried out on suggested targets. His desire is to add players and personalities to the dressing room in a bid to reinforce the squad in case the coming months prove tough.

Moyes is also cognisant of the need to balance the present and the future. What he would like right now is more Premier League experience. Come the summer rebuild the focus will shift to targeting younger players who can grow with the club as it seeks to use the new stadium to push up the table and into better days.

With Everton’s domestic loan spots used up until a resolution is found with Chelsea over the injured Armando Broja, it all makes for a tricky balancing act in the final days of the window.

One thing that is clear is there is no desire to leave anything to chance. Moyes and TFG do not want the next months to descend into the type of chaos that beset former managers and the previous ownership and are willing to act to protect themselves from that scenario unfolding. The need for additions has, of course, only been strengthened by the devastating injuries suffered by Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Orel Mangala in the win at Brighton. Calvert-Lewin is set to be assessed by a specialist but there are now real doubts as to whether he will be able to have an impact before the end of the season, while Mangala’s campaign is over. Both players were clearly in Moyes’ first XI.

So expect business before the end of Monday. But also expect the result against Leicester to influence it. One issue Everton have, and have had for some time, is that the club’s predicament is not that attractive to the calibre of players needed to pull them from the spiral of relegation fights they have been caught in for some time. Without the money to smooth over any concerns, bringing in top targets has proved difficult against the backdrop of PSR problems, the chaotic uncertainty at the top of the club, and the tumultuous form on the pitch.

This is the first transfer window of a new era and many of the concerns that may previously have held players back should be gone by the summer, when PSR issues will ease, more than half of the first team squad leaves the club and TFG will have settled into power. Combine those factors with the new stadium and Everton will be a project that will be tempting to the type of ‘elite’ targets Moyes spoke about wanting in his first press conference since returning to the club.

Everton have got to get there first though and this window is suffering from a hangover of previous turmoil. A win over Leicester could well change that. If Everton could enter the transfer market in its final days with a side that has won three Premier League matches in a row and opened up a chasm to the bottom three then it will be easier to attract the players to maintain that distance over the coming months. Should Everton lose, then selling the club to the players Moyes would prefer will be tougher.

This means there is more to play for than just three points on Saturday. Like so many recent matches against the Foxes, it is a game loaded with significance. Everton have come out on top more often than not against Leicester when it has mattered. Brendan Rodgers may have purred over James Maddison in the Bonfire Night win at Goodison that was the beginning of the end of Frank Lampard’s reign, but the previous May had seen Lampard earn a crucial victory at the King Power. Twelve months later the draw suited Dyche’s Everton and was crucial to the Blues staying up at Leicester’s expense.

This game does not carry the same significance, but it matters for a host of important reasons.