Everton vs Leicester City

COYB.

I would play Garner instead of Onana and McNeil instead of Gray.

We're Everton and playing at Goodison. Two clean sheets and 4 points from the last 2 games against tricky opponents. We're tough to beat and they won't be looking forward to this one. There's no reason we shouldn't go into this expecting the 3 points.

I am.

I understand everyone's nervousness and apprehension given last season's traumatic experience, but come on.

I don't get this talk of survival. Win our next 2 winnable league matches and we're right up that table before the World Cup. This league is wide open. We're 2 points behind Liverpool and only 5 off 7th place. Without insulting anyone's intelligence, that's 2 games away. A lot to play for and I'm looking up, not down.

And we can be in the next round of the League Cup by next Tuesday night. A step closer to Wembley.

I know everyone likes to predict or suggest the team, which I enjoy reading and getting insights into different views. Personally I don't care who's playing. That one is for the manager and his staff.

Many rightfully thought that Crystal Palace were a tricky proposition, we beat them handily.

Continue with the 4-3-3, because their midfield is better and more creative than ours. Take Gordon out of the team, because he's very inconsistent at the moment (has he been destabilised more than we're allowing for?).

As Danny says, our season looks very different if we win these two. There's no real reason not to expect a minimum of four points from Leicester and Bournemouth.

I don't like the stick Gray and Gordon take on here, because I think the negative tactics we have employed most of the time are not conducive to great wing play. But we have paid £20M for McNeil. We need to know what he can do.

McNeil is no substitute. IMO. Yeah, I saw the goal against Palace, but he seems to me to be a lad who needs confidence like the rest of us need oxygen. He needs to be told he will be starting games rather than left sitting and hoping to get 10-15 minutes. That in itself comes with pressure.

I wouldn't mind rotating him Gray and Gordon as Frank tinkers with ideas on how to get us up the pitch. It's the only way we will know who the best two are when we do "hopefully" start going for the jugular.

We need to win the next two matches or it's back to a Bottom 3 fight for us and stuck there for the entirety of the World Cup break. Get stuck in early and get the old lady bouncing under the floodlights and we can have a nice relaxing break till after Crimbo.

COYMB

My 27-year-old son is away abroad so isn't here to tell his 51-year-old father to get a grip, so I'm a bit unregulated right now and in free flow. You'll have to forgive me.

I guess at this stage of life, it will never leave me.

Regardless of what we think or predict, we all want those 3 points tomorrow. Let's go and get them.

COYB 💙💙👍

We haven't given anyone a good thrashing in years. There's no particular reason to think we will tomorrow but sooner or later it's bound to happen right? So that's my prediction

Yes, that's fine, any reason to think 6-0 is fine, but this is Everton, right, so make it 6-1!!

That's me being frank... 😊

I don't think anyone will begrudge them that goal if the score is 6-1.

Calvert-Lewin & Maupay. I like the idea. Dare I say it, akin to Toshack and Keegan - across the way. When Toshack took over at Swansea City he replicated it with Waddle and Giles and it also worked out very well then!

We are at Goodison which should be a 1-goal start and I think we will win.

Now me saying this optimistically should throw up danger signs because I'm a champion pessimist by nature.

On the other hand, as someone else said in the thread, this is Everton and we do have a habit of nosediving when favourite.

I'll still stick with us to win though because, whichever way you look at the game, we should win.

I feel they overplay - if you press them, without over-committing, you can get some joy. And defending slightly deeper, like we do with Coady and Tarkowski, is the way to nullify Vardy.

It will probably be 2-0 to Leicester having said all that!

That worked out not too badly either. 😜🤔💙

I've just discovered a reason why should get a load of goals: it's bonfire night tomorrow, time for the team to produce a load of fireworks and throw them at Leicester.

Speaking of Leicester, it's also Lester Piggot's birthday, one of my favourite sportsmen.

I didn't realize Paul Wilkinson was already in double figures before the New Year, but it was Sheedy who was pulling the strings around this period, and his sublime chip still lives in my memory, even though it's nearly 36 years since he put the icing on the cake after giving a fine exhibition of how to find space whilst playing as a central midfielder.

The last time Everton played at home on Bommy night (I think) would do for me, when we came from two goals down to beat Watford during Unsworth's spell in charge

Personally, I'd take any offer that comes in January for both Mina and Keane. Keane lacks Mina's mental strength and Mina lacks Keane's basic fitness. You cannot do without either to compete in the Premier League.

Leicester will be a very tough opponent to beat as they are now back on their best form. I want us to start Patterson as his pace will be needed and he's more of a threat going forward, even though Seamus can do a capable job.

I want us to get to a nice comfy top-half 20 points before the Blatter Bribefest in Qatar. This will be a great opportunity to demonstrate just how much we've improved as a team. Calvert-Lewin and Gordon to score.

Fireworks! There you go, I knew there was a reason for my confidence. I think the last time we won 6-0 was under Walter Smith against WHU if the old memory is holding up.

Probably start with the same starting 11 though from previous games.

On thrashings yes they are rare for us blues. Moyes 7-1 v Fulham, Yakubu hat-trick and didn't a Marco Silva Everton beat Man Utd by 4 or 5? I'm sure we must have given someone a hiding with Lukaku.

Tony #26,

Imagine having Sheedy pulling the strings in midfield now, didn't get the chance in his prime, with Reid & Bracewell a superb combination, commanding the centre. His accuracy with a heavy wet ball back then, what would he do with the light ball now, orchestrating from the middle.

Best laugh was 5 minutes from the end the West Ham fans started imagining goals and celebrating. We eventually worked out what they were on about when they were chanting "We want 4, we want 4."

Wish all games were watched in that spirit.

Days of Campbell and Jeffers.

I get the impression Frank doesn't like the media. His body language gives the impression that he doesn't want to be there and gets irritated by them. They do his head in. His questioning the the quote that Leicester haven't conceded 26 goals from set pieces this season. Quality; they've conceded 25 total in the Premier League.

Tony Abrahams, you've only gone and dropped the Sheedy bomb. Now I'm off. Not just that delightful chip, but that looped pass against Norwich when he literally stood still, waited for the run of Heath and lifted an unconventional pass right over the heads the defence for Inchy to run onto. I can still see it now as I did from the Gwladys Street.

A player that could make time stand still whilst everyone around him ran like they were on duracel batteries. He slowed the game down and made his decisions.

Watched a George Best doc yesterday. Was decent. Lots of 60's footage. Then I found this….
https://www.myfootballfacts.com/england_footy/football-league/first_division_table_1960s/

Second best team of the '60s. Then 5th '70s. Then 3rd '80s. Then 9th. Then Kenwright. Hardly saw the shite until the '70s.

Haha, nice anecdote!

Leicester have a few decent players but defensively they can be got at. Maddison is their best player, snuff him out in midfield and we will have a great chance tomorrow to repeat the Crystal Palace performance. Although 6-0 would be preferable I'd settle for,

Everton 3 Leicester 1.

COYBLUES!

Could be the usual rumour mill nonsense but this lad is a really good source.

Neal Maupay can be our fox in the box. He can be an annoying little shit, but he's our annoying little shit. He can take so much pressure off Calvert-Lewin in and around the penalty area, perhaps making space and chances for the likes of Anthony Gordon, Iwobi and Onana coming from deep for any loose flick-ons by Calvert-Lewin. Calvert-Lewin and Maupay will certainly get a lot of man-marking from defenders which would surely open up space for our attacking midfielders.

I'm confidently predicting an emphatic victory tomorrow, followed up by a double over Bournemouth. We should play our strongest possible team against Bournemouth on Tuesday in the Carabao Cup, then the same again next Saturday.

We've then got a 7-week break before the season resumes, so any minor injuries picked up in the next week will have plenty of time to fully recover. This next week is an ideal opportunity to move up the table and progress in the Carabao Cup. Come on Everton, with a near fully fit squad, don't pass this opportunity by.

Maupay is not a super athlete but he does get in positions to put the defenders off-balance. I think he also needs to be deployed to help Iwobi with getting out of our half and distribution to the wingers.

If he and Iwobi can gain an understanding, I could see him doing a 1-2 with Iwobi, kick it out to the wing and then dash into the box to drag a defender and possibly pick up the bounce. Really hoping he can find a way to work Calvert-Lewin open and give Dom the best chance to get some dangerous touches in the box.

We can jump the shite. And if we do, I'm drinking this weekend because we'll be in good shape to stay above them for a fucking week. I'm almost sending my red shite colleagues (can't call 'em 'friends') an email warning of the vitriolic volcano I intend to spew at them if they can't manage to get a point at Spizzz.

In fact, we should get on top Saturday and pile the pressure on until the Sunday kickoff for those shit clubs.

I agree his best chance is alongside Calvert-Lewin. i Don't think Frank agrees, he seems to want to play one or the other.

Pickford
Mina Coady Tarkowski
Patterson Onana Garner Mykolenko
Iwobi
Calvert-Lewin Maupay

Patterson and Mykolenko given license to bomb, 5 massive threats from set-pieces.

Our offensive limitations are obvious to all and, yes, it would be nice to have gotten Trossard given the form he is showing right now.

Frank has to man-manage the squad he has and eke out results as best he can until January at least then get a couple more strike options if possible.

A good showing against the Foxes would be nice to take us in to Bournemouth next week.

He can be a nuisance to defences and think he could work well with Calvert-Lewin assuming of course he stays fit. His career average is one in four, so today could be the day, if stats are to be followed to the letter.

Surely better than Rondon but, then again, cost a lot more, is nearly 10 years younger etc.

We're beginning to play as a team each week. So, as long as we get away from the Bottom 3 and stay around mid-table for this season, I'll be content with that.

Just returned from 3 pointless hours in the car.

Not having a great day.

Feel like I deserve a good thumping home victory against Leicester today.

One goal will win this, hopefully that's in our favour.

Gray seems to get a lot more decent balls into the box than Gordon and McNeil was also brought in for his ability to put decent crosses in. I think we could then bring Gordon on for the last half an hour for whichever of the two isn't having as good a game – hopefully he could be a great impact sub against a tiring defence with a bit of fire in his belly wanting to prove he should start.

Easy, this management lark! I'm plumping for 2-1 to us, with a few jangly nerves at the end that we can all laugh about after.

Tried a bit of the Danny O'Neill and asked my two Shar Peis what they thought the score would be. As if they could understand me, they are Chinese... COYMB.

Just googled shar pie pics. Wouldn't want to mess with one of them. Good omen – sounds like Sharpy. Any sort of win would do for me.

Let's go and do this, Blues. And roll into next week on a high. Into the next round and follow up with another win.

I'm getting concerned looks again.

Bread and butter football, lad, is what pays your Wonga! 100-110% or not at all, probably only be on Belgium's Bench anyway if at all, while Bobby's Shoes (Brown) are melting in the Sun. Feel Gray should come in a bit and not stay so wide, feel he is more effective from the Centre (left or right) just behind the Striker(s)

Then again, what do we know as fans? When all said and done, we don't have a say in what the team is, and I'm almost convinced that Frank doesn't have a look at TW pre-game for ideas! 😜🤔💙