Match Preview
Things may be heating up off the pitch with the news that Farhad Moshiri has signed a deal with 777 Partners for a buyout of his majority shareholding in Everton FC, but, on the field, the Premier League program resumes this weekend with the winless Blues taking on title-chasing Arsenal at Goodison Park.
The potential end of the Moshiri era will be months in the making, with the Florida-based investment outfit’s bid subject to regulatory approval and 777 themselves to be vetted by the League’s owners and directors test. In the meantime, the Toffees are already embroiled in another fight for top-flight survival.
The opening four games of the campaign yielded just two goals and one point and though Sean Dyche can point to encouraging attacking metrics, the fact remains that his team are in the bottom three coming out of the international break with one of their toughest assignments up next.
Encouragingly, Everton have faired well in this fixture in recent years, having won four and drawn one of their last five meetings with the Gunners on home soil but two years ago it took the inspiration of Demarai Gray — the winger created an equaliser for Richarlison by slamming a shot off the crossbar and then scored a dramatic late winner — a player no longer at the club and last season, it was a backs-against-the-wall display of dogged defending led by Seamus Coleman, who won’t be involved this time due to injury.
While new signing Beto is expected to make his home debut and Dominic Calvert-Lewin looks ready to return, protective mask and all following a cheekbone fracture, it’s at the back where the Blues’ prospects in this game will likely lie.
Jarrad Branthwaite has been in fine form since belatedly being introduced in place of Michael Keane but team captain James Tarkowski has been questionable of late, the veteran Ashley Young hasn’t covered himself in glory, Nathan Patterson’s relative inexperience has been exposed and the midfield has often failed to provide the necessary cover.
If Dyche and his men can demonstrate improvement in that defensive respect from the work put in over the break then they will stand a chance.
Inspired from the midfield by Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice and lent potency by the likes of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus in attack, though, Arsenal have one of the most fearsome attacks in the division.
They ran out handsome 3-1 winners last time out against Manchester United, having toppled Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace in their first two games but their 2-2 draw with Fulham exposed some of their defensive frailties which Dyche will be hoping to exploit through the enterprising Arnaut Danjuma and the pace and power of Beto.
Though there were some question marks over Saka’s fitness this week, it seems as though Mikel Arteta will have just three players definitely ruled out in Thomas Partey, new signing Jurrien Timber and midfielder Mohamed Elneny.
Dyche, meanwhile, will have wait to welcome one of his own new acquisitions to his team in the form of Jack Harrison. The loanee has resumed full training but won’t be ready to return to action this weekend while Coleman and Dele Alli aren’t expected back until next month at the earliest.
If Everton are to make Goodison a fortress again, it’s games like these where they’ll need to perform in all areas of the pitch. Missed chances against Fulham and Wolves cost them dearly and they failed to hold on to an early lead at Sheffield United and the points will be much harder to come by against Arsenal.
A repeat of last season’s edition of this match, Dyche’s first in charge as the Toffees’ boss, would be a huge boost to morale and a magnificent tonic ahead of the upcoming trips to Brentford and Aston Villa.
Kick-off: 4:30 pm, Sunday, 17 September 2023
Referee: Simon Hooper
VAR: Stuart Attwell
Last Time: Everton 1 – 0 Arsenal
Predicted Line-up: Pickford, Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Young, Gueye, Garner, Onana, Danjuma, Doucouré, Beto