There is, all of a sudden, something of a feel-good factor around Everton right now.
A week is a hell of a long time in football, and a week on from that first of two wins over Newcastle United, it all looks a bit rosier around the club.
That can often be a dangerous feeling when it comes to Everton, especially when there is a very winnable home game coming up.
Coventry City visit Hill Dickinson Stadium on Friday, with Frank Lampard coming up against the Toffees for the first time since he was dismissed back in January 2023.
Lampard is unlikely to cause much ire within Everton’s fanbase, but this is a great chance for David Moyes’ men to head into the international break in a fantastic position. They need to take it.
Here’s what to expect from Coventry.
LAST TIME OUT
Coventry have yet to draw a Premier League game this season (W3 L6).
They claimed brilliant back-to-back wins in October, over Nottingham Forest (1-0) and Newcastle (4-1), respectively. They then suffered successive defeats, but bounced back with a convincing 3-1 win over Sunderland at home last weekend.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
This is the first time these teams will go up against each other since January 2001, when Everton won 3-1 at Highfield Road.
These teams have met 80 times in total, with Everton winning 37, Coventry winning 23, and the other 20 matches finishing all square.
COVENTRY’S FORM
Here are Coventry’s last six results:
September 16th: Coventry 1-3 Aston Villa (EFL Cup)
September 19th: Nottingham Forest 0-1 Coventry
October 12th: Coventry City 4-1 Newcastle
October 19th: Tottenham 3-1 Coventry
October 24th: Coventry 0-1 Fulham
October 31st: Coventry 3-1 Sunderland
ONE TO WATCH
Jack Rudoni has been Coventry’s big threat in recent weeks, and he fits in brilliantly as an advanced attacking midfielder in Lampard’s system.
Rudoni has netted 3 league goals this term, with those goals coming across his last four appearances.
His ability to run beyond the centre-forward and make late darts into the area is something Everton will certainly have to be wary of, and he’s a bit reminiscent of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in that sense, albeit the Toffees’ man is a more rounded package.
WHAT CAN EVERTON TARGET?
Coventry have shipped 16 goals in their 9 league games so far this season — only 3 teams in the division have conceded more.
The underlying metrics, though, do suggest Lampard’s team have been a tad unfortunate in that regard. Their xG against figure comes in at 13.7 (Everton, for reference, are at 13.0).
But Coventry, like Newcastle, can certainly be got at. They have already faced 151 shots in the league (18 more than Everton).
The lesson for Moyes from last week’s home game against Newcastle has to be that Everton must get on the front foot. Don’t be reckless, of course, but play with the kind of intensity the fanbase can get behind, and then the quality should shine through.
Read more – Horses for courses: Moyes has to be willing to mix things up for Everton v Coventry