Like London buses, 2 meetings with Newcastle United have come along at once.
It’s advantage Everton after Thursday’s League Cup win at Hill Dickinson Stadium, but Monday’s Premier League contest at St James’ Park will be an altogether different challenge.
Here’s what to expect from Newcastle (away).
LAST TIME OUT
James Garner, Hayden Hackney and Thierno Barry did the damage in what was Everton’s most accomplished display in a good while, at least in a clinical, attacking sense.
But that will only feed into Newcastle’s desire to put that right when they host David Moyes’s men, especially when you consider that Everton also got the better of them in a topsy-turvy clash in the corresponding fixture last season, with Barry bundling home to clinch a 3-2 win.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
After Thursday’s win, Everton have lost just 1 of their last 7 matches with Newcastle.
The overall record stands at 79 Everton wins, 38 draws and 72 Newcastle victories.
NEWCASTLE’S FORM
Here are Newcastle’s last six results:
September 14th: Leeds United 4-1 Newcastle
September 19th: Newcastle 2-1 Hull City
October 12th: Coventry City 4-1 Newcastle
October 17th: Newcastle 0-1 Aston Villa
October 25th: Crystal Palace 0-2 Newcastle
October 29th: Everton 3-1 Newcastle
ONE TO WATCH
Newcastle had a whopping 28 shots on Thursday, and 9 of those hit the target. The fact that they only scored once speaks to the lack of quality in those opportunities, more than necessarily because Everton were excellent defensively.
Dan Burn grabbed Newcastle’s (consolation) goal, but Everton must be better generally at dealing with the aerial strengths that the Magpies have.
Jarrad Branthwaite returning to the fold would definitely help here, and he is expected to be available after passing the concussion protocols.
Harvey Barnes was wasteful on Thursday but he is still Newcastle’s biggest threat from open play once he is in his stride.
WHAT CAN EVERTON TARGET?
As we saw on Thursday, Matthias Jaissle has not yet quite managed to make it click defensively for Newcastle.
They have the ability to create plenty of decent openings going the other way, but the chances they do tend to give up at the back are often big ones, with opposing players handed too much time and space in dangerous areas.
The lesson from last time out for Everton is that they must not just focus on trying to sit in and frustrate Newcastle. They have to be willing to commit men forward, and if they do, they are likely to get their rewards.
Who knows yet whether Jack Grealish will be back in the fold, but even if he is available for selection, Moyes must resist the urge to put the 31-year-old straight back in. There is absolutely no reason not to start with Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling once again, as both of them have the pace and dynamism to test Newcastle’s leaky defence.